Lhoknga is a small coastal community about south-west of Banda Aceh, located on a flat coastal plain in between two rainforest-covered hills, overlooking a large bay and famous for its large swathe of white sandy beach and surfing activities. The locals reported 10 to 12 tsunamis, with the second and third waves being the highest and most destructive. Interview with the locals revealed that the sea temporarily receded and exposed coral reefs. In the distant horizon, gigantic black waves about high made explosion-like sounds as it broke and approached the shore. The first wave came rapidly landward from the south-west as a turbulent bore about high.