How A Girl Lost A Decade Ago In The 2004 Tsunami Got Reunited With Her Parents
In our FEEL GOOD FRIDAY column this week, we bring to you a story of Raudhatul Jannah, an Indonesian girl, who was swept away by the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami has been reunited with her family a decade after she was given up for dead.
By Sadho Ram — 08 Aug 2014, 05:00 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
A four-year-old Indonesian girl swept away by the devastating 2004 tsunami has been reunited with her family a decade after she was given up for dead, her mother said Thursday
Raudhatul Jannah, who was missing for 10 years after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami in Aceh, Indonesia
Image via abc.net.auRaudhatul Jannah, now 14 years old, was miraculously spotted by her uncle in June after she was long given up for dead by her heartbroken parents following the Dec. 26, 2004, catastrophe, reported AFP.
nydailynews.com"God has given us a miracle," said Jamaliah, the mother of Raudhatul Jannah, who went missing when she was four years old.
abc.net.auThe girl, named Raudhatul Jannah, and her seven-year-old brother were carried off when huge waves struck their home in West Aceh district on 26 December 2004, reported AFP
Four-year-old Raudhatul Jannah and her seven-year-old brother were separated from their parents while holding onto a floating piece of wood in the tsunami waters, when it hit her West Aceh home on December 26, 2004, reported DPA.
dailymail.co.ukJannah's mother Jamaliah, 42, and her husband survived the quake-triggered tsunami that killed tens of thousands in Aceh, on western Sumatra island, and had long ago given up hope of finding either of their children alive.
abc.net.au
About 170, l000 died in Aceh ... What was once a thriving village near the coast of Sumatra after the earthquake and ensuing tsunami on 26 December 2004.
Image via news.com.auJamaliah said that she and her husband desperately searched for their children for about a month before presuming that all hope was lost. The powerful storm had killed hundreds of thousands of people in 14 countries, while leaving their homeland splintered and for the most part under water.
nydailynews.comIt wasn't until the child's uncle spotted a girl resembling Jannah in a nearby village that the mystery of whatever happened to their daughter began to come to a close
In June, Jamaliah's brother spotted a girl in a village walking home from school who bore a striking resemblance to Jannah. He made inquiries and found out that the girl had been caught up in the tsunami, and was swept from Aceh to some remote islands southwest of the province.
news.com.au
A fisherman rescued the girl, took her back to the mainland and handed her to his mother, who raised the youngster, according to Jamaliah.
abc.net.auAfter the tip-off from her brother, Jamaliah and her husband, who moved to the neighbouring province of North Sumatra following the tsunami, went back to Aceh in late June to visit the girl, now aged 14
Jamaliah said she is willing to take a DNA test to prove that Weni (right), as she is now known, is the daughter who was taken from her in the tsunami waters 10 years ago
Image via dailymail.co.ukThey discovered that she was indeed their daughter who went missing a decade earlier. "My husband and I are very happy," Jamaliah told AFP. "I am so grateful to God for reuniting us with our child after 10 years of being separated."
Her husband Rangkuti, admitted he did not believe his daughter could be alive when his brother-in-law first spotted her
Jamaliah's (right) brother spotted Weni, whom he thought looked like his missing niece, in June and discovered she had been swept from Aceh during the tsunami
Image via dailymail.co.uk“There’s no way that’s my daughter, I thought, because it had already been 10 years,” he said, speaking in the capital of Aceh province, Banda Aceh, where the family had travelled to meet journalists.
telegraph.co.ukBut he went on: “When we saw her, we knew, we felt the bond right away. If we need to do a DNA test, then we are prepared to, if people don’t believe us. But we are sure she is our daughter,” he added.
Jannah, the girl, who appeared shy and overwhelmed by the media attention, told reporters:
“I am very happy I can be with my mother and father again.” She also said she was happy to meet her younger brother, who was born after the tsunami.
nypost.com
Now, she has moved to North Sumatra to live with her parents, who say they are now hopeful they can find their son
Raudhatul Jannah (second from right) sits with her family on Wednesday. She was rescued by fishermen after she was separated from her family during the Boxing Day tsunami
Image via dailymail.co.uk“We are very hopeful we can find her brother,” Rangkuti told reporters. “We have reported our son missing to the police so they can help us find out his whereabouts.”
abc.net.auRangkuti believes his son Arif Pratama Rangkuti may still be on the Banyak Islands, an archipelago some 100 kilometres from the Aceh coast where the children ended up after being swept away.