Petra Nemcova reveals the ‘pain’ still with her ‘so strongly every single day’ 20 years after she survived tsunami
Her boyfriend was swept out to sea and died while Nemcova survived by clinging to a palm tree for almost eight hours
SUPERMODEL Petra Nemcova has opened up on the daily struggles she still faces 20 years after she survived a deadly tsunami.
Speaking on Good Morning America, the Czech philanthropist and TV host relieved the horrific moment she was caught up in the 2004 tsunami that tore through southeast Asia.
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Supermodel Petra Nemcova has opened up about her experience in the 2004 tsunamiCredit: abc news
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She was 25 when she was caught up in the deadly tsunami, suffering broken bones and internal bleedingCredit: WireImage – Getty
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More than 220,000 people were killed in one of the deadliest-ever natural disastersCredit: ABC
Nemcova, 45, was on a dream vacation in Thailand with Simon Atlee, her fashion photographer boyfriend, when deadly waves ripped through their bungalow.
Atlee was swept out to sea and died while Nemcova survived by clinging to a palm tree for almost eight hours.
She suffered internal bleeding and broken bones in what was one of the largest natural disasters in recorded history, killing an estimated 228,000 people across 15 countries.
Nemcova spoke to ABC News’ Diane Sawyer in the months following the tragedy.
Now, she has sat down again with Sawyer to discuss the “moment when my life changed forever.”
Nemcova said Atlee and she were packing up to leave their resort in Khao Lak on the coast of the Andaman Sea in southern Thailand when the tsunami hit on December 26, 2004.
Suddenly, massive waves smashed through their bungalow, pulling Atlee out into the water.
As the small village was overwhelmed by waves up to 33 feet high, Nemcova said she clung desperately onto the top of a palm tree, holding on for nearly eight hours before being rescued.
As she held on for dear life, she said she heard the screams of people including young children crying out for help.
“I couldn’t go and swim to them or try to help them because I couldn’t move my legs,” she said in her original 2005 interview.
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Eventually, locals rescued her and gave her clothes after the force of the storm tore them off.
She had suffered a shattered pelvis and internal injuries, and couldn’t move, so the strangers placed her on a floating mattress and guided her through the debris so she could receive medical help.
Atlee’s body was finally identified almost three months later on March 4, 2005.
Nemcova didn’t know if she would ever be able to walk again, nor if she would recover emotionally from the grief of losing her boyfriend.
She said that throughout her recovery, she was still haunted by the screams of children crying out for help during the tsunami.
But that trauma spurred her on to begin her charity work that would take up the following two decades.
“That day of tsunami, I didn’t have a choice to help children,” Nemcova said.
“But today and every day, I have a choice, and that keeps moving me every day. And we all have a choice every day.”
She founded the nonprofit organization All Hands and Hearts using her own money, to support people hit by natural disasters.
On December 26, to mark the 20th anniversary of the tsunami, Nemcova and other All Hands and Hearts volunteers will light candles in memory of the victims and as a sign of hope for people today.
In 2019, Nemcova married entrepreneur Benjamin Larretche, and the couple now have a son, Bodhi.
“I have a son and I have a beautiful husband, and there’s so many blessings to be grateful for,” Nemcova said.
“I was lucky, because I met my other twin flame … Ben is my twin flame and he is an incredible soul, and I just feel so lucky, because I didn’t know it was going to happen,” she added.
