The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: British Couple's Epic Survival Story

Disaster Strikes 

On the morning of December 26th, 2004, Pete and Pat Etheridge were enjoying breakfast on the beach at the Ganesh Gardens hotel in Sri Lanka. Gazing out at the sparkling waters of the Indian Ocean and surrounded by verdant trees and pristine sand, it felt like the ideal start to any day. But then Pete noticed something strange: 

It wasn't a wave. The water just surged. It sort of surged up towards us and it was… I just thought it was just very odd. Not frightening or anything. It was just odd…

Pete Etheridge

What happened next was something out of a nightmare. The water began to rise with increasing intensity, until finally a massive wave slammed into the beach, instantly sweeping Pete and Pat into the hotel’s dining room. In the flooded restaurant Pete could see his wife pinned up against the wall by a table, but as he struggled to reach her his vision suddenly went dark. The big one had hit. A tsunami with waves reaching up to 100 feet. The couple were now separated, struggling to survive one of the worst natural disasters in human history. 

Pat

Pat, still trapped, watched in horror as her husband was violently swept inland. Then, within seconds, another even larger wave hit, completely submerging her in 30 feet of water. Slowly asphyxiating, she began to lose consciousness. Luckily, the wall she was pinned against finally gave way. Now free, she began desperately swimming towards the light…but her troubles were far from over when she reached the surface. Pat had to manoeuvre through trees and telephone poles—in tsunami force currents, direct impact with these objects would mean instant death.

But then Pat remembered something she had learned whitewater rafting when she was 12: if you cross your arms and relax, the water will carry you to a quiet place. The strategy worked, and Pat came to slumped against a tree in a flooded garden. She could now take in the utter devastation the tsunami had wrought. Looking out on the post-apocalyptic scene, her mind turned to Pete.

I just could not believe anyone could have survived. To have survived was actually unbelievable anyway, so I could not see that Pete could have survived…

Pat Etheridge

But Pete was alive and battling through a harrowing survival journey of his own. 

Pete

The massive wave that sent Pete careening inland instantly knocked him out. 

My next experience was waking up a long way underwater, which is the most surreal experience. I don't know how far I was in the water. It felt a bloody long way. 

Pete Etheridge

Pete was flung about like a rag doll, his body colliding with bricks, beams, and corrugated metal—the detritus of buildings reduced to rubble. For a moment, he resigned himself to this fate: better to simply let himself drift back into unconsciousness than spend his last moments struggling through an impossible current. But then, an irrepressible need to survive surged through him. 

I like life. I think life is absolutely beautiful. Everything about it. I wanted to see more of it. So the survival bit really sort of kicks in. And I found I needed some sort of buoyancy, and I found myself grabbing leaves, twigs, anything.

Pete Etheridge

In a submerged thicket of trees, he was able to literally climb to the surface. Clinging to a branch, he surveyed the damage

It was total silence, absolute deafening silence. There was no noise whatsoever. And I had the feeling that I was the only person left alive. I couldn't see anybody living through what I've just been through. And of course, then it comes into your mind. I've just lost Pat. You know, there's no way Pat could survive what I've just been through.

Pete Etheridge

The adrenaline coursing through his body kept him from realising just how badly injured he was: both shoulders dislocated, broken ribs, a lacerated back, and a cut in his arm so deep he could see bone. He was able to pull himself towards an opening he saw in the distance until eventually he reached solid ground, collapsing amongst the gnarled roots of a mangrove forest. Then the silence was broken by a terrible rumble in the distance: another wave. Too weak to move, let alone climb to safety, Pete lay still and awaited the inevitable. But, miraculously, he was now just far enough inland that the final wave never reached him. After being helped by locals, he ended up in a hospital in Colombo, where he was interviewed by CNN—he told his story and gave a description of Pat on the off chance that she was still alive and that somebody might know where she was. Incredibly, someone did, a woman named Nikki. Nikki took Pete to Apollo Hospital and wheeled him into Pat’s room. Against all odds, the couple were finally reunited. They recuperated in the hospital for a few more days before flying back to England.

Aftermath 

The 2004 tsunami was the deadliest in recorded history. Around 230,000 lives were lost across a dozen different countries. Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives all sustained billions of dollars’ worth of damage, with entire towns demolished, and over two million people displaced. One year after the disaster, Pat and Pete returned to Sri Lanka to assist with the relief efforts. What they found was a country desperately struggling to get back on its feet - with hundreds of thousands still living in refugee camps, and millions mourning the loss of family, friends and livelihoods. All they could do was give back in whatever way they could and try to repay the kindness of all the doctors, nurses, and civilians who helped them.

It was other people. Ordinary people. Who in a time of tremendous stress and terror for themselves did make that gesture. Did make sure that this was done or that was done in turn. Out of compassion and love.

Pat Etheridge