Man survived two weeks at sea after tsunami

PORT KLANG, Malaysia (Reuters) - An Indonesian man swept out to sea by the Asian tsunami has described how he survived adrift for two weeks, living on coconuts and chancing upon a leaky boat and a raft.

Ari Afrizal, 21, spoke briefly to reporters late on Monday after arriving at a Malaysian port on a container ship that had spotted him in the Indian Ocean at midday on Sunday, 14 days after the wave tore him from his homeland.

"I managed to survive as I ate the flesh of old coconuts for about 12 days. For three days I didn't get to eat anything," he said. "I gave up all hope of living."

Ari, clutching a plastic bag containing the rags that were his clothes at the time of the tsunami, wore a T-shirt and jeans donated by the ship's crew. Exhausted, he gave sketchy details of his ordeal before being taken by ambulance to hospital.

He said he was with friends building a house in the town of Calang in Aceh province when the wave struck. It pushed them inland before dragging Ari out to sea, clutching a piece of wood.

Ari said he had chanced upon a small leaking fishing boat on his second day in the water.

"The first day I clung to a piece of wood, the second day I retrieved a small fishing boat but it was leaking. I was in the small boat for four days before I managed to get on a raft," he said.

Ari said he waved frantically at several ships from the raft without success before the Arab-based Al Yamamah container ship came into view.

"I managed to whistle at the ship and then waved my hands. The ship sped on but it sounded the klaxon and I stood up. I thought the ship had left the area and I sat down and cried. But the ship returned and cheered me up," he said.

"I then waved at them as I knew I was safe."

Ari is the third Indonesian tsunami survivor to be rescued at sea.

A pregnant woman was rescued by a Malaysian tuna-fishing boat after clinging to a palm tree for five days. Another man drifted for eight days on an uprooted tree before a cargo ship found him.

More than 156,000 people were killed by the December 26 tsunami which followed a massive earthquake beneath the sea off Aceh province in the Indonesian archipelago.

Aceh accounted for almost all of Indonesia's 104,000 deaths.

- REUTERS