Bexhill family's dash from horror wave

Local businessman Peter Stavri, with wife Lorraine and teenage daughter Jade, had their family holiday in Thailand turned into a nightmare when the giant wave struck on Boxing Day.

Their remarkable tale of survival includes spending a night on a mountain to avoid the devastation below and running from the giant wall of water as it caused carnage all around them.

The largest natural disaster in living memory has already claimed 150,000 lives - and the family know how fortunate they are not to appear on the casualty list, having been on an island beach moments before the wave hit.

Last week's Observer told of how Bexhill woman Claire Brittain, 25, was swept through a hotel window by a torrent of water as the killer waves hit Sri Lanka.

Back home this week, Peter Stavri said: "We were staying on an island near Krabi and we got caught up in everything. We saw the sea just disappear and you thought it was strange."

The family were made aware of the imminent danger when they heard screaming and noticed the agitation of the local fisherman - soon after they saw a boat at sea capsize.

"I just shouted at people to run," added Peter, "As we started running people in front of us were just tossed up into the air. We headed for the mountains behind (the village) and ended up staying the night there with hundreds of other people - It was an odd experience being halfway up a mountain in your swimming trunks."

"Our apartment was right on the beach and the place was just devastated."

The Stavri's also viewed first-hand the remarkable courage of individuals who actually ran towards the wave to pull people away from harm.

The family, from Cooden, spoke of how humbled they felt after seeing people risk their own lives to save others.

Lorraine said: "It has restored my faith in the human race."

While on the mountain the group also had to face the horrific sight of orphaned children and husbands and wives desperately looking for their partners.

Lorraine said she couldn't bring herself to tell people their loved ones had almost "no chance" of survival.

The group had another scare after coming down from the safety of the mountain and were forced to run up another nearby hill when they heard rumours of more waves.

"We just didn't know what to do, we had no information," said Peter, "I was on my mobile phone to my business partner in Australia and he was telling us what was going on."

The family were eventually rescued after their hotel manager, who had stayed behind after much of the island was destroyed, arranged transport for the stranded holiday makers.

However, their ordeal wasn't over as they struggled to get a flight from Bangkok back to the UK.

Peter said: "I would like to find out if BA (British Airways) put any extra flights on. People just wanted to get home and we were lucky that we could afford alternative flights, but other people would not have been able to."

"They told me I couldn't have a flight back until January 17 and that's ridiculous. It really bugged me because there may be people in hospital in Bangkok who just want to come home."

A spokesman for BA told the Observer: "We haven't put on extra flights as such but we have a flexible policy so if people caught up in the disaster want to change they can as long as, obviously, there are seats available on earlier flights.

"We are doing all we can and doing a huge amount of work, we even diverted a flight to give aid. One jumbo jet was sent out in conjunction with the Foreign Office."

BA added they would be happy to look at the Stavri's case in more detail.

The family however, remain philosophical about what has happened to them and have decided they will go back to the region in the future.

Peter added: "Our thoughts and prayers are still with everyone out there."