Thailand wave death toll nears 5,000, more bodies still being found

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2005

BAAN NAM KHEM, Thailand (AFP) — Thailand's confirmed death toll from the tidal wave disaster approached 5,000, including more than 2,400 foreign holidaymakers, and bodies were still being found a week after the tragedy.

The search for corpses continued in the small fishing town of Baan Nam Khem in the southwestern province of Phang Nga, where a police officer said thousands were missing and feared dead.

On the former tropical paradise island of Phi Phi -- now a scene from hell, with bodies decomposing and the stench of death in the air -- rescuers said almost 600 corpses had been found and more were being discovered.

In the shattered resort town of Khao Lak in Phang Nga, the interior ministry said the search for bodies would last for up to another week. Some...