My son Martin is lucky to be alive in Phuket (From Warrington Guardian)

My son Martin is lucky to be alive in Phuket

A WINSFORD mother faced an anxious wait to find out if her son was alive following the tsunami that devastated parts of Asia.

Martin Berry, 47, narrowly escaped when huge waves crashed into the Thai island of Phuket.

He moved to the island in November to start a new life as an entertainer.

His mother Elsie, who lives in the family home on Hill Street, has spoken of her relief when she heard her son was safe.

She said: "It was a terrible few hours for us waiting for the phone to ring. Thankfully it did and he is okay, but it really has been horrendous."

Elsie described how lucky Martin was to be alive. She said: "His hotel is only three quarters of a mile from the beach so he was very close.

"He was on the beach shortly before it happened and he is very, very lucky."

Martin is well known in Winsford due to his love for entertaining and Elsie has been inundated with phone calls from worried friends.

She said: "I just want to let everyone know that he is safe because we have received an awful lot of phone calls from people who knew he had moved to Thailand.

"He still has a lot of friends in Winsford and I'm sure there will be many people who have been worried about him."

Despite Martin's lucky escape Elsie is not expecting her son to return home from the devastated island.

She said: "He went there to start a new life and he is still determined to do that.

"He loves the place and that is where he has chosen to live his life and I don't think anything will change that."

phennessey@guardiangrp.co.uk