Tourists in Thailand say they're trying to help

Paul Kelly, from Brisbane, went swimming two days after the disaster. He says the Thais need tourists. Picture / Brett Phibbs

Pieraldo Croppo from Italy plays pool at an outdoor restaurant in a usually crowded alleyway of shops and eateries at Karon Beach in Thailand.

It is just over a week since the tsunami wrought its havoc along this beautiful and popular coastline, killing thousands upon thousands.

The girlie bars are quiet but the few tourists out this balmy evening are emerging from a sombre week.

Pieraldo was not hurt in the tragedy, but he saw the devastating aftermath. Even so, he did not hesitate to stay on.

"It's not nice," he says. "But I stay for the people."

He wants to help support the local economy.

These are tourist havens and locals rely on the tourist dollar. They are struggling to make a buck right now.

Shops and roadside stalls selling fake Rolex watches and Gucci handbags fail to woo many passersby, because there are too few passing by.

"Business bad," say the stall-holders.

On the beaches where there were once thousands of tourists, only a handful remain.

But these people are swimming in the sea where so many died, and some are sunbathing topless.

From those spoken to, it is evident this is no sign of disrespect despite criticism from abroad of "ghoulish" tourists.

People love Thailand and believe they are helping by being here. Some have come since the tsunami, on holidays previously organised, but most have survived it and stayed on, some helping with the clean-up.

At Patong Beach - where the tidal wave was 11m high and pounded everyone in its path, then powered through the front shops - two jetskis now race and people swim as debris is cleared.

Paul Kelly is an Australian on holiday from Brisbane. He ran from the street and spent a night in the hills. The 60-year-old is dripping from a swim. Despite being in the midst of the disaster, and still feeling disturbed by it, he was out swimming two days later.

"I've got to be realistic.

"Basically, I looked at the situation and I thought if anything worse than this can happen, well, I can't stop it."

Nick Jackson, an Australian expatriate from the Gold Coast, is also realistic. He watched the wave from his home, which is above Patong Beach township.

"Nature provides us, we can't do anything further, although it's terribly sad."

He has no problem with tourists swimming. The locals need tourists here as they get on with the business of rebuilding.

English tourist Mark Beard is lying on a poolside chair, a wheelchair beside him. He can't walk. The 45-year-old arrived at Karon Beach on Christmas Day and had been on the beach for just 10 minutes on Boxing Day, getting ready for the first swim of his holiday.

He saw the waves receding and thought it was odd.

"Then there was a lot of screaming. Someone was calling out 'get out of the water'."

He watched with growing alarm as a wave grew and water seemed to gush on to the beach like a burst riverbank. He ran for his life but "it caught me".

The wave picked up a car which pushed him through the plate-glass window of a shop before it stopped. He then watched further destruction as the wave sucked furniture out.

When he was rescued he saw people everywhere being resuscitated. "It was awful."

Mr Beard cannot believe he is alive but he decided to stay - partly because his insurance company said he was not badly injured enough to warrant being sent home, and because the Thai people have been "so nice".

He is happy to be on the fourth floor of his hotel, but is having nightmares and noises make him jumpy.

He says he will return - "absolutely. It's a wonderful place".

Owners of small businesses spoken to yesterday appealed to tourists to keep coming to Phuket so their businesses could survive.