The powerful earthquake off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra on Dec. 26, 2004, triggered a tsunami that impacted a dozen countries, reaching as far as East Africa.

Christmas in 2004, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake under the Indian Ocean triggered tsunami waves that killed some 230,000 people across a dozen countries.

Survivors and families of victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami gathered across Southeast and South Asia on Thursday to honor the memory of those lost in one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern history,