Family feared dead are found safe and well

A family of four believed to have died in the tsunami in Indonesia have been found alive and well.

No one had heard from Gareth and Floryda Smith and their children Zerubbabel, nine, and Joshua, six, of Herne Bay, Kent, who were visiting Mrs Smith's relatives on the island of Sipora, near Sumatra.

But travel agent Rick Cameron, through whom the Smiths booked their holiday, said: "One of my staff overheard my phone conversation with the [British] embassy. He said, 'I know them - they've been staying in the same hotel as me.' "

Mr Cameron added: "The island was only 300 miles from the epicentre of the quake but was largely unaffected. I am guessing that [Mr Smith] had not been near a television set or radio and had not realised that everyone was worrying."

Meanwhile, actor Eric Richard has told of his anguish at hearing of his baby grandson Charlie's death in the tsunami. The star, who played Sergeant Bob Cryer in The Bill, received an email from his son Richard Smith. He said: "I wasn't crying, I was howling. I couldn't speak."