Mom Forced to Choose Sons During Tsunami
By MERAIAH FOLEY, AP
SYDNEY, Australia (Jan. 2) - When a massive wall of water shattered Jillian Searle's idyllic tropical holiday, she was forced to make a horrific choice no parent should ever have to face: which of her two young sons to save.
Jillian Searle was forced to make an agonizing decision: which of her two sons to hold during the tsunami.
Her split-second decision tore the family apart - only to be reunited hours later.
As the Searle family settles back into their every day life in the city of Perth in Western Australia state, how they discuss their terrifying experiences will shape their future, psychologist Richard Bryant said Sunday.
Jillian Searle was near her hotel pool with her two sons Lachie, 5, and Blake, 2, when a series of tsunami waves swept over the Thai resort island of Phuket.
"I just heard a terrible roaring, a loud roaring sound and I turned around and I just saw masses, masses of water coming for us," Searle told the Nine television network this week. "I straight away thought: How am I going to keep my two children alive?"
As the first wave surged over them, Searle realized that she could not keep the three of them afloat and was forced to choose which of her boys to hold on to, and which to let go.
"I knew I had to let go of one of them, and I just thought I'd better let go of the one that's the oldest," Searle told Sky News.
Amid the churning water, Searle noticed a young woman clinging to a nearby post and begged her to take hold of 5-year-old Lachie. As Searle pried Lachie's hand from hers, he pleaded for her to keep him safe.
"I could feel him squeezing me," Searle said. "And he said to me, 'Don't let go of me mummy.' But I knew I had to."
As the raging currents wrenched them apart, Searle looked back at Lachie - who had not yet learned to swim - believing she would never set eyes on him again.
"I remember looking back at my 5-year-old boy thinking that will probably be the last time I will see him alive," she said.
Meanwhile, Searle's husband Bradley was watching the terrifying scenario play out from the hotel's first-floor balcony. He tried to rush to his wife's assistance, but the rising water had blocked the doors.
"The water level was so high you couldn't open the doors," he said. "Then I found a bar on the ground and I tried to get that into the door and lever the door open."
Once he reached the ground floor, a second massive wave crashed over the beach, forcing him to seek refuge on top of a bar.
When the water finally subsided, Bradley Searle was reunited with his wife and youngest son, and they began a desperate search for Lachie.
Frantic, Searle told her husband: "You have to find him because I let go of him. I gave him to somebody else, and I let go of him... And there is no possible way I can live my life knowing that I took his hand off mine."
By MERAIAH FOLEY, AP
SYDNEY, Australia (Jan. 2) - When a massive wall of water shattered Jillian Searle's idyllic tropical holiday, she was forced to make a horrific choice no parent should ever have to face: which of her two young sons to save.
Jillian Searle was forced to make an agonizing decision: which of her two sons to hold during the tsunami.
Her split-second decision tore the family apart - only to be reunited hours later.
As the Searle family settles back into their every day life in the city of Perth in Western Australia state, how they discuss their terrifying experiences will shape their future, psychologist Richard Bryant said Sunday.
Jillian Searle was near her hotel pool with her two sons Lachie, 5, and Blake, 2, when a series of tsunami waves swept over the Thai resort island of Phuket.
"I just heard a terrible roaring, a loud roaring sound and I turned around and I just saw masses, masses of water coming for us," Searle told the Nine television network this week. "I straight away thought: How am I going to keep my two children alive?"
As the first wave surged over them, Searle realized that she could not keep the three of them afloat and was forced to choose which of her boys to hold on to, and which to let go.
"I knew I had to let go of one of them, and I just thought I'd better let go of the one that's the oldest," Searle told Sky News.
Amid the churning water, Searle noticed a young woman clinging to a nearby post and begged her to take hold of 5-year-old Lachie. As Searle pried Lachie's hand from hers, he pleaded for her to keep him safe.
"I could feel him squeezing me," Searle said. "And he said to me, 'Don't let go of me mummy.' But I knew I had to."
As the raging currents wrenched them apart, Searle looked back at Lachie - who had not yet learned to swim - believing she would never set eyes on him again.
"I remember looking back at my 5-year-old boy thinking that will probably be the last time I will see him alive," she said.
Meanwhile, Searle's husband Bradley was watching the terrifying scenario play out from the hotel's first-floor balcony. He tried to rush to his wife's assistance, but the rising water had blocked the doors.
"The water level was so high you couldn't open the doors," he said. "Then I found a bar on the ground and I tried to get that into the door and lever the door open."
Once he reached the ground floor, a second massive wave crashed over the beach, forcing him to seek refuge on top of a bar.
When the water finally subsided, Bradley Searle was reunited with his wife and youngest son, and they began a desperate search for Lachie.
Frantic, Searle told her husband: "You have to find him because I let go of him. I gave him to somebody else, and I let go of him... And there is no possible way I can live my life knowing that I took his hand off mine."