Honeymooner survivors vow to change life

‘‘I honestly thought this is the worst way to die. I thought I’m not meant to die like this,’’ Robins, 26, said as he lay in a hospital bed in Phuket, his collar bone broken and most of his right ear torn off.

Robins and Amanda, who lay next to him with a fractured pelvis, were among hundreds of tourists stranded on Phi Phi after the massive wave washed onto the island.

The couple were strolling near the beach on Sunday when they heard people screaming and saw tourists jumping off boats.

‘‘We thought it was a terrorist bomb, so we jumped over a hotel fence and hid in a storage room,’’ Robins said. ‘‘We held hands and crouched in the corner. Then we heard a rumbling explosion that didn’t end.’’

Moments later, their hiding place collapsed around them, Amanda said.

‘‘We were pushed through two layers of concrete and forced to let go of each other’s hands,’’ said the 27-year-old teacher. They were pulled underwater and swept out to sea.

‘‘There were broken pieces of wood and bits of metal everywhere. It smelled of gasoline,’’ Robins said.

Suddenly, they saw a hotel employee in a boat searching for lost family members.

‘‘We were screaming. We said if we don’t get on this boat, we’re dead,’’ Robins said.

The man tossed them a line and pulled them into the boat. By nightfall, they were in hospital in Phuket.

‘‘We both came within 0.1 seconds of not seeing each other. There are going to be changes in our life from now on,’’ Robins said. — Reuters