Woman whose mom died within the Boxing Day tsunami reveals she’s ‘grateful’ by no means to have discovered her physique after ‘trauma’ of seeing mutilated corpses scattered throughout her city

Across Christian countries, December 26 is a time when families get together as part of the Christmas period to celebrate, as a new year approaches. 

However, for Khairani, from Indonesia, the date holds significance for a different and tragic reason; the anniversary of the last day she saw her mother alive.

On December 26, 2004, Khairani had just moved to the city of Banda Aceh. She was in her early twenties and had big dreams of graduating university with her loved ones by her side.

Full of ambition and positivity about her future, Khairani had no clue of the devastation that would soon strike.

The deadliest tsunami in history claimed the lives of more than 227,000 people, including 151 UK citizens, after it hit heavily populated Asian destinations including Thailand, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.

It was caused by a massive 9.1 Richter Scale earthquake that struck at 7:58am on December 26th in 2004, 150 miles off Banda Aceh. The city had no prior warning of the disaster that was about to descend on 300,000 people. 

Speaking to FEMAIL, Khairani, now 40 and a mother herself, said getting caught up in the catastrophic tsunami felt like ‘the end of the world’.

She managed to ride away from the waves on a motorcycle, but the tsunami closely followed, just five metres behind.

‘It was a miracle we were saved. I thought it was doomsday,’ she said.

While Khairani was lucky enough to have survived the catastrophic natural disaster, some devastating news lay just around the corner for her.

She recalled: ‘One day after the tsunami, I finally found some relatives and I asked about my mother. They told me she passed away, that my village was destroyed.

‘I saw bodies floating in the sea. I was crying. I thought maybe it was my mum.

‘My world became an incredibly dark and sorrowful place, [it was] the greatest loss of my life when my mother passed away.’

The mother-of-one added she was unable to give her mother, named Rohani, a proper burial because she couldn’t find her body; which she believes was lying among the piles of bodies that had been left on the streets of her town. 

‘I saw countless bodies scattered along the streets of Banda Aceh, their forms and conditions so unnatural that it was beyond comprehension,’ she recalled.

Khairani was terrified that she would find her Rohani’s body in an awful state, as she had seen many other members of the community.        

She added: ‘I prayed to God: “Dear God, please don’t let me see or have to accept the sight of my mother’s body if she has passed away. If she is still alive, please bring us together. And if she has gone, please place her in Your most beautiful paradise”.’  

Khairani – who lost her father while she was still in nursery – believes that God heard her prayers, as she still hasn’t found her Rohani’s body; nor those of her extended family who died in the tsunami.   

‘Perhaps if I had seen their bodies, I would have suffered severe trauma, as my mother was the only person who became not only my mum, but also my father and my best friend,’ she said.  

‘I am grateful and have learned so much from my prayer, even though there is no grave. My mother will forever be in my memory and heart. Half of my thoughts are still filled with her. 

‘Until this moment, I continue to live with the best memories and motivation from my mother.’

Khairani said that she does not even have any photographs left of her late mother, as they were all destroyed in the tsunami. 

As the tsunami hit Banda Aceh, the waves topped 100ft tall and travelled across the Indian Ocean at 500mph, the speed of a jet plane.

The earth was hit so badly by the natural disaster that the earthquake caused a shift in the world’s changing rotation.

One year after the harrowing event, Khairani – who is an only child – threw herself back into her studies and graduated university in 2005.

She was able to get through this different time by remembering Rohani’s hopes and dreams for her to have a good future.

Khairani said: ‘She had prepared and provided me, her only daughter, with the best education. 

‘Even after my father passed away when I was still in nursery, her love for me never wavered. With the support of my mother’s extended family – my uncles, aunts, and other relatives – I was able to get back on my feet and successfully complete my studies.

‘It was my mother’s hope and dream for me to become a teacher, and I was able to fulfil that wish.’

She then joined World Vision’s emergency response team and became a child-friendly space facilitator, helping children overcome their trauma from the tsunami.

She engaged in activities with them which included singing, dancing and playing games with them, which, in turn, helped her heal too. 

Khairani said: ‘I am determined to help children and people around me with the skills I have. They also need someone to confide in. 

‘I want to help children who have lost their parents and people who have lost someone they care about, as I have experienced myself.’

The following year in 2006, Kairani married her husband Surdirman and the pair went on to have a baby girl, Alifa.

She then realised that she had a new mission in life – to ensure that she made the world a better place for her newborn daughter. 

Kairani joined one of World Vision’s women’s saving groups, which is where those from vulnerable communities band together to save cash in small amounts and lend to each other when needs arise, such as when a family member becomes ill.

The group supported women starting their own small businesses and World Vision assisted them in getting legal status and accounting training.

These women would go on to sell snacks, baking cookies, serving coffee to make extra money.

‘Now a mother who just finished her elementary school education can make money so that she can ensure her children go to school. 

‘From their businesses, women are adding rooms to their houses, they are no longer depending on their husbands to make all the money,’ Khairani said.

‘Abuse in families is lower than before the tsunami. Women are more respected by their husbands. [Men] want to listen to the women’s opinion now. Things are better. They can listen, not just speak.

‘Before the tsunami just one girl might go to university from here. But after, it’s an equal number of boys and girls going to university. Almost all the people after high school go to university now.’ 

Kairani said that she feels proud of what she has accomplished when she looks at her life over the past 20 years.

She said she wants to set an example for her daughter and feels more connected with her late mother as she watches her grow up. 

‘It’s like I’ve been given a second chance at life with my mother. I want my daughter to be happy and to receive all my love and affection. 

‘I want to give her the best education, better than what I had. I want to support her growth and development to become a strong, independent woman who can achieve her dreams. 

‘So, when she is grown up and understands the meaning of life, she will understand how much I hope and love her, just as I received love from my late mother. 

‘And someday, she will proudly tell the world about me as her mother, just as I remember mine and share her story with the world.’