Digital Pictures of the Tsunami from Beyond the Grave

We all had the thought on that horrible day. "Wow, I wonder what it looked like to be there!" But it was inevitably followed by the realization that anyone who saw the Tsunami in all of its power and size likely did not survive to tell the tale. Well, now, apparently one couple has managed to capture the moment in a way that would not have been thought possible.

Christian Pilet of North Bend could not have known the power of his discovery: the last photos taken by a couple who lost their lives in the Dec. 26 tsunami and the closure the photo diary would bring to a grieving family half a world away in British Columbia. Taken in sequence, the photographs tell a gripping story: John and Jackie Knill arriving at a Khao Lak resort, happily enjoying Christmas dinner with a large group of friends and then basking in a brilliant tropical sunset. The next day, the couple is seen hugging, smiling — radiant on the beach. Then the story turns ominous: people stroll the beach under a clear blue sky, apparently oblivious to the large wave that has formed a line across the horizon. The wave gets closer, its power more evident as it kicks up sand and mud and finally crashes onto the beach.

And no, the photographer did not survive. The camera was found washed-up on the shore. It is beyond belief. But then, it so was the Tsunami.