Phuket, Thailand ? Six days after one of the worst natural disasters in decades, foreign tourists were back on the beaches of this Thai resort island Saturday, frolicking in the gentle waves of the Andaman Sea, riding jet skis, posing for snapshots and sunbathing topless on the sand.

That was mindboggling — and infuriating — for island resident Aime Yodkaew, as she swept away debris.

“I just figure if everyone uses about an hour of their holiday time (to help clean up), this would help a lot for the locals,” said Yodkaew, a Swede who lives on the island with her Thai husband.

But Yodkaew acknowledged that as soon as tourists get back to indulging in the sort of fun Phuket was famous for before the catastrophe, the sooner her husband’s sailboard and catamaran rental business will be able to make money again.

A dozen or so foreigners were out sunbathing Saturday on Karon Beach, still littered with garbage, dead plants and leaves — a reminder of the giant waves that struck on Sunday, killing more than 4,800 people in Thailand, more than half of them foreigners. Across southern Asia and eastern Africa more than 123,000 people died.

Tourists are the lifeblood of the islands of southern Thailand and this is the peak of the season for overseas visitors.

The Finance Ministry estimated that the tsunamis will likely shave just 0.3 of a percentage point from gross domestic product growth in 2005. “The Thai tourism industry hasn’t been affected much by this event,” Finance Minister Somkid Jatusripitak said. “Foreign tourists may be scared for a short while, but I think in the next two to three months at most, their fears will fade away.”