His 6-year-old daughter is among those still missing in tsunami-ravaged Thailand.

PHUKET, Thailand-Amid the destruction and despair on this resort island, an 8-year-old Japanese boy lay quietly in his hospital bed Tuesday morning, sipping a soft drink through a straw. He had been reunited with his parents nearly a day after Sunday's quake-triggered tsunami separated the family.

The boy was certain that his little sister would show up any minute.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the boy was still waiting. His 6-year-old sister was still missing after being swept away in the tsunami.

``I'm just hoping to be able to take my daughter home,'' said the boy's father, Takahiro Shigeshiro, 37, breaking down in tears.

Speaking to The Asahi Shimbun from a wheelchair, bandages covering an injured leg, a visibly shaken Shigeshiro explained the horror his family experienced while they were vacationing on Phi Phi island near here.

Shigeshiro, originally from Hiroshima Prefecture but now living in Singapore, said Sunday was the final day of the family's vacation that started Dec. 22.

It was a little past 10 a.m., and they were preparing to check out of their hotel when water came gushing into their room.

Shigeshiro grabbed for his son's hand, but the waves immediately pushed the boy out of sight.

Describing himself as a strong swimmer, Shigeshiro said he couldn't battle the power of the water.

Within a matter of seconds, his family had disappeared.

Despite deep gashes in his leg, Shigeshiro climbed onto the roof of a nearby building and spotted his 39-year-old wife atop another. But the children were nowhere to be seen.

He said that when he tried to descend to look for his children, people around him were shouting, ``The second wave is coming.''

That evening, the couple were taken by boat to Phuket, where they were both hospitalized.

Given the power of the tsunami, Shigeshiro said he had little hope that their children had survived.

But just after 2 a.m. Monday, a travel agent told him that an 8-year-old Japanese boy had been taken to another hospital.

His wife soon confirmed it was their son. He had survived with a broken leg.

Later Tuesday morning, Shigeshiro maneuvered his wheelchair to his son's bedside.

``It is a miracle that the three of us were saved in that tsunami,'' he said.

But any sense of relief is quickly dashed by thoughts about the girl.

The father still clings to the hope that his daughter will be found.

But he said he is starting to feel a sense of resignation that she will never come back.(IHT/Asahi: December 30,2004)