On December 26 last year, Patiwat Khomkhla and his brother were standing on the beach in Takua Pa district in Phang Nga province on Thailand's southwest coast, waiting for their father to return from a fishing trip.

The waves separated them and Patiwat drifted on the Andaman Sea for two days while holding onto a log, before a Thai Navy helicopter spotted him frantically waving his T-shirt.

"It's terrifying to drift alone in the darkness of the deep sea," the Bangkok Post quoted Patiwat as saying.

"It was so cold. There were a lot of corpses surrounding me.

"I was more afraid of the corpses than sharks."

Patiwat, a fifth grade primary school student, said despite being hungry and crying continuously, he survived by thinking of his parents until his rescue.

"I will never forget that moment," Patiwat said.

Patiwat's 50-year-old father died in the tsunami, but his mother and two of his brothers, including one who was on the beach, all survived.

On December 26, Patiwat will read a poem at a commemorative ceremony at Khao Chong Fa, in Thailand's worst affected area of Khao Lak.

"I was stunned as it is a great honour," Patiwat reportedly said, adding he was practicing daily to improve his pronunciation.

"I am not good at reading but I will do my best."

Five other ceremonies will be held along the Andaman coast in honour of the nearly 5,400 people who died in Thailand, about half of them foreign holiday-makers.

A total of 217,000 people were killed in the disaster.

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