WEEKS of anxiety ended for Craig Seymour when he found his brother safe and well in Thailand within 24 hours of landing in the tsunami-torn country.

And his emotional reunion with Colin, formerly of Marsden Walk, Radcliffe, was helped by the Radcliffe Times.

Colin (43) was initially thought to have been living on the island of Phuket where the waves wreaked havoc and devastation on Boxing Day.

But a telephone call from a reader gave updated information about his whereabouts. The caller had met up with Colin, a former Radcliffe High pupil, while travelling in Thailand in November, revealing he had been living and working on the island of Koh Yao Noi, off the coast of Krabi.

Craig, of Danesmoor Drive, Bury, was unable to get a connection to the resort, despite numerous attempts, so he flew to Bangkok last week in a last-ditch attempt to find him.

Colin was tracked down by Craig within 24 hours on the island Koh Yao Noi, where he had been working as a manager of a small village of tourist homes.

Speaking from the island, Craig described the moment he was reunited with his brother as "fantastic".

He said: "I've never felt so relieved in all my life. The burden has been completely lifted from my shoulders.

"I just had to go to Thailand to find him and see for myself that he was safe.

"The Foreign Office in Thailand had been making calls to islands across the region.

"It' like a series of villages out here where everyone seems to know everyone else, and in the end they found my brother. It was such a relief to see him."

He was taken by BBC staff on a speedboat to meet up with Colin last Friday. Colin moved to Thailand in 1996, and although the brothers had not spoken for five years, Colin kept in touch via postcards.

Craig, who is due to return shortly, had his trip paid for by the Government.