Four Japanese have been confirmed dead in Thailand and seven others are believed to have died in Sri Lanka in the massive tsunamis that hit South and Southeast Asia over the weekend, a senior Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday.
Kaito Yoshino, 8, died when he was swept away by a tsunami in the Thai resort city of Khao Lak, just north of Phuket island. His father, Sadayuki, 41, a diplomat at the Japanese Embassy in Bangkok who was also vacationing on the beach with his family, remains missing.
The Foreign Ministry also confirmed the death of a 27-year-old Japanese woman, believed to be Naoko Kakinoki of Fukuoka Prefecture. She was vacationing on Phuket. Her parents headed for Thailand early Tuesday.