Tragic backstory behind one of 'most chilling images of all time'

A chilling image encapsulates the horror of the Boxing Day Indian Ocean tsunami which claimed the lives of over 228,000 people.

The Indian Ocean earthquake - measuring between 9.1 and 9.3 on the Richter scale - was felt across 14 countries on 26 December 2004, including Indonesia, Thailand, India and Sri Lanka.

It caused a series of 30 metre high waves that travelled up to 500mph, as entire communities were wiped out within a matter of minutes.

Survivors told The Guardian that the damage was 'devastating' and described it as something they had never seen before, and are unlikely to see again.

As was the case with many images taken at the time, one in particular shows a group of people on a beach in Ao Nang, Thailand, who are at risk of being swept away from their loved ones forever.

It's been 21 years since the Boxing Day Indian Ocean tsunami claimed the lives of over 228,000 people (Creative Commons)

But instead of running away from the wave like the rest, the snapshot appears to show one man who is facing it head-on.

To speculate what was going through his mind in that moment would be wrong, but it certainly looks like he may have accepted his fate.

Similarly, a 17-year-old who was affected by the tragedy, said he was playing football with his friends when he 'ran home after the strong earthquake'.

Entire communities were wiped out (CHOO YOUN-KONG/AFP via Getty Images)

"When I looked at the sea I saw something I had never seen before and I was terrified. My family rushed into our minivan but the road was full with everyone trying to escape," Marthunis from Alue Naga village, Banda Aceh recalled.

"The black wave hit our minivan, turning us over several times before I blacked out. When I regained consciousness I was in the water. Holding on to a school chair, I floated until I landed on a beach.

"I had no idea where I was and I was so hungry and thirsty. There were bodies and debris everywhere."

Nazaruddin Musa, 42 at the time, from Darussalam, Banda Aceh, was fishing in a village when he felt the earthquake.

The destruction was felt across 14 countries (SENA VIDANAGAMA/AFP via Getty Images)

After going home to check if his family were ok, he thought to drive 'around town to look at the damage'.

"But minutes later I saw the water coming towards us, it was washing up houses and gathering speed," Musa said.

"I grabbed my son and my wife and we ran. There was a huge wall behind our house and we only just managed to scale it in time. It was a life or death moment because the water was right behind us.

"We ran to a two-storey building, and the next moment I saw the first wave take hundreds of people. I ran down and picked up a small girl lying on the ground and took her up to the second floor.

"Then the second wave hit. After the first wave I could see the dead and injured but the second wave was devastating, it just swept everything away."