Toll in Thailand may cross 2,000

The toll in Sunday's devastating tsunami in Thailand may cross 2,000. Over 700 foreign tourists are among the victims, Thai Deputy Interior Minister Sutham Saengprathum said on Tuesday.

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"The latest figures we have is more than 990 confirmed deaths. Of these, some 200 were Thai and the rest foreigners," he told reporters before a cabinet meeting. "The final toll could surpass 2,000," he added.

Hundreds of rescue workers and soldiers are pulling out the dead out of the mud or retrieving them from forests or ruined buildings, media reports said.

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Two Indians holidaying in Thailand's Phuket island were killed by the waves which rose up to 10

metre high. They were identified as Sangeeta Tushar and Sumanam Sridhar.

While Sangeeta was identified by her husband, Sridhar was identified by his friends.

"Several bodies found on the beaches by Thai rescue workers are yet to be identified as most tourists would not have carried identity papers or passports to the beach," Charge d' Affaires of the Indian Embassy here T P Seetharam told PTI.

Sutham said the worst hit area was the town of Khao Lak in Phang Nga province, where, he estimated, more than 1,000 people died.