BAR HARBOR – College of the Atlantic graduate Rebecca Clark died doing what she loved most: studying the ocean and its creatures.

Clark, 32, died in the catastrophic tsunami that struck a dozen Southeast Asia nations on Dec. 26, killing nearly 160,000 at last count on Wednesday.

A Nova Scotia native, Clark was working in her research station on the Golden Buddha Beach on the small island of Koh Pra Thong, Thailand, when the tsunami, spawned by a massive earthquake in the Indian Ocean, struck land.

COA spokeswoman Donna Gold said Clark focused on marine biology at the Bar Harbor oceanfront college, which specializes in environmental studies.

She researched the residency patterns of fin whales in the eastern Bay of Fundy for her senior project in 1996.

Clark was in Thailand researching sea turtles for Naucrates, an Italian-based environmental organization, Gold said. She had returned to COA last summer as a volunteer and spent a few days on Mount Desert Rock.

In a message to students this week, COA President Steve Katona wrote, “We will remember Rebecca’s love for the ocean and the many contributions she made toward understanding and conserving the life it contains.”

According to reports from the Italian company, Clark was standing on the beach with other researchers and employees when the first tidal wave hit. They ran for higher ground, but were taken by the waves.

A memorial service was to be held Wednesday in Nova Scotia.