by Brother Ed Jones sm
The horror started at 6.48am. on the Feast of Michael the Archangel while I was reading the Sydney Morning Herald off the Internet. First the noise, then the computer screen started to jump all over the place; then there was a mad rush outside – my four dogs and all. The dogs were hysterical with fright. From outside looking up at the house it was unbelievable that a building could take so much shaking. The whole place shook and the water in the fish-pond sloshed all over the place. It seemed to go on and on.
Later we heard the earthquake was 8.3 on the scale. Inside the house we discovered the mess of things shaken off shelves etc. Next to the computer the cup of coffee on the desk was half emptied and spilt over papers. However there was no structural damage to buildings.
Within a short time, 12 minutes in fact,the tsunami warning was sounded. Reports started to come through of the devastation on the South East coast. Three waves hit the coast, the second being the strongest, leaving total destruction and 143 people dead. It was all over so quickly that the emergency services were a bit slow out off the blocks; but with the speed of all this happening no one could have done much except run to higher ground. On the North Coast there was no tidal surge to speak of, but the island of Manono on the Western end of Upolu got hit, as did some of the villages on Savai’i, but to a lesser extent. American Samoa took the full brunt and the damage there was extensive with 34 deaths.
The heart-breaking task of finding bodies
All day long ambulances were going back and forth; Red Cross vehicles and the like all heading South across the island. The Public Hospital just round the corner from our house was in top gear with the dead and injured being taken there.
Reports on radio told of total damage to some villages, schools, hospitals, churches and the like. We waited for 10 days to go across to the South Coast, as were awaiting the arrival of Fr. John Rea who was coming to stay. He was able to see first-hand the damage, and later conducted Healing Services in some of the affected areas. While driving to the area it was easy to see the damage of the tsunami – it went up to 80 metres inland to the base of the cliffs – the whole area was covered with sand, mud, rocks and large coral pieces. Trees were leafless, and the only buildings left standing were the Catholic Churches – with only sand damage, and in one particular village a statue of Our Lady in the front of the Church remained and all round it everything was wiped out.(picture next page). In the rubbish, remains of houses, fishing boats wrapped round trees, driven well inland, also cars and trucks upended, some in trees.
Tales started to emerge of a mother running with her children and the children ripped from her hold and saving herself by grabbing hold of tree branch. A German tourist saved himself and his wife clinging to coconut trees but were badly injured by the mud and rocks that the sea threw up.
After such devastation, one bright light was the NZ AIR FORCE who ferried up a helicopter and medical staff to help; a second helicopter arrived a couple of days later, and they did untiring work. Since then aid is still coming in various forms. Caritas is erecting 50 homes and other organizations helping in numerous ways.
Remains of ruined buildings on the South Coast of Upolu
