A STUDENT had a miraculous escape when the Asian tsunami swamped her hotel room in Sri Lanka.

Eighteen-year-old Aimee Donald thought she would drown as water rose to six inches from the ceiling, but somehow she managed to battle her way out.

The North Yorkshire student was then grabbed by people standing on the roof of a nearby building and pulled to safety. "It is nothing short of a miracle that she survived," said her relieved father, Munro Donald.

Aimee's amazing survival story comes as the confirmed number of deaths in the Boxing Day disaster rose to more than 60,000. Disease could double that figure.

Aimee Donald was just getting dressed in her hotel room when the tidal wave struck.

The door was forced off its hinges by the force of the water and the room filled to within six inches of the ceiling.

"Aimee believed she was going to drown," said her father, Munro Donald.

But the 18-year-old from Kirkbymoorside, who had been staying in a Sri Lankan coastal town called Unawatuna, is a strong swimmer.

After finding herself floating on top of the water, she managed to battle her way out of the room and by a stroke of luck got on to the roof of a nearby building.

"Some people on the roof grabbed her and pulled her on to it with them," her father said.

"It is nothing short of a miracle that she survived."

Mr Donald has told how he and his wife, Heather, head of the medical diagnostic unit at Scarborough Hospital, had endured a traumatic day, not knowing whether Aimee had survived the tidal wave caused by the Asian earthquake, until they received a mobile phone call early yesterday.

"We had had a hellish day, not knowing how or where she was," he said. "We were very, very worried, especially after seeing the horrific pictures on television," said Mr Donald.

He said Aimee had said she was all right except for some cuts and bruises. He had told her to write down her experiences.

"I think it might help her to cope. She has seen many bodies and widespread devastation which will inevitably have an effect on her for a long time."

He said his daughter had been spending a gap year working in an orphanage in Unawatuna, before going to the University of Glasgow to study medicine.

The youngster, who had left Lady Lumley's School, Pickering, this summer after completing her A-levels, had raised £3,000 to fund her gap year trip through Travellers Abroad, said Mr Donald, a retired chief executive of a Nottinghamshire health trust. He said: "She is a very caring girl."

Before the disaster, Aimee had been in regular contact with her family. We spoke to her on Christmas Day and she was enjoying herself on the beach with friends, and she said it didn't seem like Christmas because of the climate and sunshine."

Within hours, the scene changed dramatically as a result of the earthquake and tidal waves which caused widespread death and devastation of property throughout the region.

Mr Donald thanked all of Aimee's friends who rang the family non-stop on Boxing Day, knowing that she was in Sri Lanka and asking about her.

"We were very grateful for all their support and kindness," he said.

Samantha Murray, 19, of Harrogate, has returned home to Britain and told of her experiences on the Thai island of Phuket when the tsunami struck.

She said she had seen sunbeds, chairs and tables washed away by the waves, but had been shielded from the main force of the water.

"Looking at what happened elsewhere, it seems I was very lucky. I think I was in the right place at the right time.

"It was quite scary but no one really knew what was happening or what to do or where to go. I'm now just really glad to be home. It is a great relief."

Updated: 11:33 Wednesday, December 29, 2004