Hi all
Well we have been rather quiet in the last week which has been because of hard work and late nights working with the international scientists who are currently visiting Samoa to investigate and research the Tsunami. Adam has just written the following which we will share for now until we have a moment to write you more about our experience. I should get back to the report for Governement I am meant to be finishing right now!!
We have both been flat out working with a team of international scientists studying the tsunami. UNESCO had assembled the team, which had people from all around the world - NZ, Australia, USA, Japan. Italy, Brazil. They were being hosted at USP and there were a few USP professors from other campuses involved. Anyway, we heard about this and turned up to their first meeting to find out what they would be doing and a couple of hours later I was out in the field with them! We both ended up working with them all of last week and through the weekend. My part of the team flew out on Monday night, so I am back to normal work now but Angela's team is still here and desperately trying to deliver their report by the end of the day!
I joined up with a team that was measuring how far and how high the tsunami had travelled as well as maximum water depths where this could be found. We were also surveying building damage, recording the extent and nature of damage to various building types. We had some long days in the field, but collected a lot of good data and have already produced a report with our preliminary findings.
Angela got involved with the 'Social Impacts' group. They have been interviewing the survivors to record their experiences - what they felt and saw, how they survived, how they reacted, what are their future plans etc. She ended up working with a guy from Hawaii who videos these stories and they use them at the tsunami museum. They also take these stories and use them in some of the 'how to survive a tsunami' education materials that are produced. She enjoyed it, but found some of it quite hard. After a few long days in the field and listening to some heartbreaking stories she was pretty drained, but has bounced back now. Now she just needs to get her group to deliver their report and she can relax!
That's all for now folks but will be back in touch soon.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
RIP Puppy
Talofa All
Well just when we thought the sadness was over and we could start to move on, puppy got sick and passed away. Friday night she was very lethargic. Saturday not much better. I managed to get her to drink some water but no eating. She was very wobbly and could not really hold herself up on her legs though did manage to walk to the puddle outside the gate and lie in it. Sunday I was getting very concerned about no improvement and by this stage puppy could lift her head into the water bowl but did not have the strength to drink. We contacted the Vet from the Animal Protection Society and took puppy up to the clinic. The vet said either she had been poisoned or had the Parvovirus which was very contageous to dogs and dangerous for puppies under the age of 1. We pumped her full of fluids and antibiotics and she perked up right away and tried to stand up and get off the table.
We took puppy home and she walked around the section for a good hour which we thought was a good sign then she crawled under the car to sleep. About an hour and 1/2 later I went back out to see her as it was about time for some more water and electrolytes in a syringe given to us by the vet. Unfortunately she did not move when I called her and then I noticed her still eyes and no breathing. This was only about 2 hours after we had seen the vet and all thought she would pull through.
It was heartbreaking to see our beautiful little puppy so still and stiff. Adam set to digging a hole in the back yard which was hard yakka in the ground that is very dry and like concrete. Actually he hit a slab of concrete and a number of large rocks before finding a spot that was suitable.
We buried puppy and placed rocks on the top to stop the other dogs digging her back up. What a way to spend our White Sunday weekend.
Puppy will be remembered for her mischief as the jandal theif, for bringing all manner of rubbish into our back yard from coconut shells to mats, cardboard boxes, bones etc, for her beautiful ginger and golden colourings and when she wagged her tail her whole back end wagged with it. Somehow she was also louder than the other 2 dogs put together when she barked.
RIP little puppy. Peter wanted you to become the fire dog at the fire station. I hope you are now in heaven where you can look after each other.
Well just when we thought the sadness was over and we could start to move on, puppy got sick and passed away. Friday night she was very lethargic. Saturday not much better. I managed to get her to drink some water but no eating. She was very wobbly and could not really hold herself up on her legs though did manage to walk to the puddle outside the gate and lie in it. Sunday I was getting very concerned about no improvement and by this stage puppy could lift her head into the water bowl but did not have the strength to drink. We contacted the Vet from the Animal Protection Society and took puppy up to the clinic. The vet said either she had been poisoned or had the Parvovirus which was very contageous to dogs and dangerous for puppies under the age of 1. We pumped her full of fluids and antibiotics and she perked up right away and tried to stand up and get off the table.
We took puppy home and she walked around the section for a good hour which we thought was a good sign then she crawled under the car to sleep. About an hour and 1/2 later I went back out to see her as it was about time for some more water and electrolytes in a syringe given to us by the vet. Unfortunately she did not move when I called her and then I noticed her still eyes and no breathing. This was only about 2 hours after we had seen the vet and all thought she would pull through.
It was heartbreaking to see our beautiful little puppy so still and stiff. Adam set to digging a hole in the back yard which was hard yakka in the ground that is very dry and like concrete. Actually he hit a slab of concrete and a number of large rocks before finding a spot that was suitable.
We buried puppy and placed rocks on the top to stop the other dogs digging her back up. What a way to spend our White Sunday weekend.
Puppy will be remembered for her mischief as the jandal theif, for bringing all manner of rubbish into our back yard from coconut shells to mats, cardboard boxes, bones etc, for her beautiful ginger and golden colourings and when she wagged her tail her whole back end wagged with it. Somehow she was also louder than the other 2 dogs put together when she barked.
RIP little puppy. Peter wanted you to become the fire dog at the fire station. I hope you are now in heaven where you can look after each other.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Outside of the Bubble....
Well last Saturday we volunteered for the Red Cross to see what we could do to help the tsunami victims. We dutifully packed our back pack with "survival" stuff such as first aid, gloves, non-perishable food, water, jandalls (we were actually wearing the closed in shoes), hand wipes and sanitizer, the camera, phone and ..... well you name it and we probably had it in there!! On the way we picked up our friend from netball Molia who wanted to come help too. We were all very keen to get stuck in and help out with something.
In the morning though I received a call from the USP Campus Director asking if I could go and take a picture of "the vision" that had appeared on the John Williams building while we were in Fiji and which was apparently growing stronger after the tsunami. The Vision was of Mother Mary and 8 Disciples. Luckily Molia was there to show me where to look! We got a couple of good pictures of what Adam refers to as the stain from the guttering! You can be the judge. It is however giving a lot of people a lot of hope that it is a sign.
Next stop was the Red Cross at Motootua next to the main public hospital in Apia. After registering a ute pulled up which we were told was our ride so we jumped in after loading clothes, food, water etc on the back.
The drive around the coast took a while. I was feeling a bit apprehensive about what we would find at the other end. It was however nice to get out of Apia and to see that not all of the beautiful coastline of Samoa has been damaged. In fact there is still a lot of beautiful places left untouched. This began to lift the spirits in the heart.
When we got near to the Aleipata area it wasn't until we came down the hill that we saw the destruction. Houses gone, everything brown and dry and dead. It was easy to see where the wave had washed in to. Surprisingly the palm trees around the coast were still standing. They are tough little b*ggers!! Made a mental note if ever caught in a tsunami to hang on to one of them!! We pulled in at the hospital on the Aleipata side and lept out of the truck to help.
A lot of standing around happened next. I approached a palagi guy and asked him what we were meant to do. We managed to register again and help with sorting some stuff into piles for families and then realised all the vehicles were gone and we were still standing there so a bit more standing around happened.
Sadly they brought in a body while we were there. The police pulled up with a faded blue canvas stretcher on the back of the ute and a white body bag. After lumbering the body off the back of the truck and putting in under a makeshift shelter the poor men were retching along the fence line. There were flies all over the white bag and I really felt for them and what they were having to deal with and see.
When the vehicles returned we managed to get on the next delivery run out to a family who were sitting under a tarpaulin propped up with sticks looking at the concrete slab which was all that was left of their home. We delivered some pillows, mats, water, food, kitchen utensils and household items to them. They were very grateful but it was very sobering to see what they were having to cope with.
After our delivery run Adam and I decided we were not being of much help so took at walk to the Taufua area. Along the way we saw first hand the destruction. There were many diggers out moving great piles of rubble and rubbish from the beach. The road had already been cleared of rocks. There was a bit of a stench in the air like the mangrove swamp due to the rotting fish and sea life that had been thrown onland. We sat at Taufua and picked out where our fales had been when we had stayed and remembered the dining hall and the benches that used to be on the beach that were now smashed to smitherines. The NZ Herald photographer and reporter came to talk to us for a while but they were more interested in people who had been staying there during the tsunami.
All in all getting to go last Saturday helped a lot with our healing. Even though there was massive destruction of certain areas of the south coast there was still hope and a positive feeling that all would be OK. Nicola and Fraser went past in their car so picked us up and gave us a lift back to Apia via Cross Island Road which gave us a chance to check out Sea Breeze and the now non existent restaurant where we have had a few nice meals.
The past week has continued to be sad but not as much so as the week of the tsunami when so many horror stories had us all scared. We attened the funeral for our friend the firefighter, Peter Letiu. This was an experience in itself as after waiting 1/2 hour to get into the funeral home following a previous funeral we were then all asked to leave and wait outside as another funeral had to happen first! This is the first time we have ever been kicked out of a funeral! Sadly though the funeral homes are under pressure and many services are happening back to back and in Samoan time so it's a matter of taking your place in the queue. The service itself was very good though and we rounded the day off with a few drinks and much laugher as we remembered the things Peter used to do. We also put up photos to remind us of the happy times with the "Happy Juice" that he so liked to partake in.
Since this there has also been the state funeral this week where all 143 of the tsunami victims were acknowledged. We didn't go to this. Felt it best to let those who had lost family members etc the opportunity. We watched it on the TV and saw people we knew in tears. I have since heard it was a very sad occassion. 10 or so bodies were part of the state funeral and have been buried together in a place where a memorial to all victims will be placed. I plan to go visit that when it is ready.
We have also had another tsunami warning following the earthquake in Vanuatu. This turned out to be a non-event but certainly caused a large amount of panic in Samoa. The roads out of Apia town were jam packed with cars going nowhere and there was much distress from people trying to get themselves and their family up the hill. The phone lines blocked up so I couldn't get through to see if Adam was evacuating OK and just had to hope and pray he was on his way to USP. Very frightning times. We have a few plans laid out now for emergencies and where we will meet up etc.
Well this has been a bit of a long post. I hope you are still reading! This weekend is White Sunday here in Samoa so a long weekend for us. Unlike last year we will not be heading away but staying put at home. This year is a very difficult year for people to celebrate children especially in the wake of so many who lost their lives last week. There is still grieving to be done but I would like to hope we are moving on now while being ever vigilant of Nature!
In the morning though I received a call from the USP Campus Director asking if I could go and take a picture of "the vision" that had appeared on the John Williams building while we were in Fiji and which was apparently growing stronger after the tsunami. The Vision was of Mother Mary and 8 Disciples. Luckily Molia was there to show me where to look! We got a couple of good pictures of what Adam refers to as the stain from the guttering! You can be the judge. It is however giving a lot of people a lot of hope that it is a sign.
Next stop was the Red Cross at Motootua next to the main public hospital in Apia. After registering a ute pulled up which we were told was our ride so we jumped in after loading clothes, food, water etc on the back.
The drive around the coast took a while. I was feeling a bit apprehensive about what we would find at the other end. It was however nice to get out of Apia and to see that not all of the beautiful coastline of Samoa has been damaged. In fact there is still a lot of beautiful places left untouched. This began to lift the spirits in the heart.
When we got near to the Aleipata area it wasn't until we came down the hill that we saw the destruction. Houses gone, everything brown and dry and dead. It was easy to see where the wave had washed in to. Surprisingly the palm trees around the coast were still standing. They are tough little b*ggers!! Made a mental note if ever caught in a tsunami to hang on to one of them!! We pulled in at the hospital on the Aleipata side and lept out of the truck to help.
A lot of standing around happened next. I approached a palagi guy and asked him what we were meant to do. We managed to register again and help with sorting some stuff into piles for families and then realised all the vehicles were gone and we were still standing there so a bit more standing around happened.
Sadly they brought in a body while we were there. The police pulled up with a faded blue canvas stretcher on the back of the ute and a white body bag. After lumbering the body off the back of the truck and putting in under a makeshift shelter the poor men were retching along the fence line. There were flies all over the white bag and I really felt for them and what they were having to deal with and see.
When the vehicles returned we managed to get on the next delivery run out to a family who were sitting under a tarpaulin propped up with sticks looking at the concrete slab which was all that was left of their home. We delivered some pillows, mats, water, food, kitchen utensils and household items to them. They were very grateful but it was very sobering to see what they were having to cope with.
After our delivery run Adam and I decided we were not being of much help so took at walk to the Taufua area. Along the way we saw first hand the destruction. There were many diggers out moving great piles of rubble and rubbish from the beach. The road had already been cleared of rocks. There was a bit of a stench in the air like the mangrove swamp due to the rotting fish and sea life that had been thrown onland. We sat at Taufua and picked out where our fales had been when we had stayed and remembered the dining hall and the benches that used to be on the beach that were now smashed to smitherines. The NZ Herald photographer and reporter came to talk to us for a while but they were more interested in people who had been staying there during the tsunami.
All in all getting to go last Saturday helped a lot with our healing. Even though there was massive destruction of certain areas of the south coast there was still hope and a positive feeling that all would be OK. Nicola and Fraser went past in their car so picked us up and gave us a lift back to Apia via Cross Island Road which gave us a chance to check out Sea Breeze and the now non existent restaurant where we have had a few nice meals.
The past week has continued to be sad but not as much so as the week of the tsunami when so many horror stories had us all scared. We attened the funeral for our friend the firefighter, Peter Letiu. This was an experience in itself as after waiting 1/2 hour to get into the funeral home following a previous funeral we were then all asked to leave and wait outside as another funeral had to happen first! This is the first time we have ever been kicked out of a funeral! Sadly though the funeral homes are under pressure and many services are happening back to back and in Samoan time so it's a matter of taking your place in the queue. The service itself was very good though and we rounded the day off with a few drinks and much laugher as we remembered the things Peter used to do. We also put up photos to remind us of the happy times with the "Happy Juice" that he so liked to partake in.
Since this there has also been the state funeral this week where all 143 of the tsunami victims were acknowledged. We didn't go to this. Felt it best to let those who had lost family members etc the opportunity. We watched it on the TV and saw people we knew in tears. I have since heard it was a very sad occassion. 10 or so bodies were part of the state funeral and have been buried together in a place where a memorial to all victims will be placed. I plan to go visit that when it is ready.
We have also had another tsunami warning following the earthquake in Vanuatu. This turned out to be a non-event but certainly caused a large amount of panic in Samoa. The roads out of Apia town were jam packed with cars going nowhere and there was much distress from people trying to get themselves and their family up the hill. The phone lines blocked up so I couldn't get through to see if Adam was evacuating OK and just had to hope and pray he was on his way to USP. Very frightning times. We have a few plans laid out now for emergencies and where we will meet up etc.
Well this has been a bit of a long post. I hope you are still reading! This weekend is White Sunday here in Samoa so a long weekend for us. Unlike last year we will not be heading away but staying put at home. This year is a very difficult year for people to celebrate children especially in the wake of so many who lost their lives last week. There is still grieving to be done but I would like to hope we are moving on now while being ever vigilant of Nature!
Friday, October 2, 2009
In the Bubble....
I write to you from the bubble that is Apia. The bubble that has escaped all the devastation that surrounds us. It is like a roller coaster ride of emotions here. On one hand things are continuing in reletive normality, on the other there is the news paper, TV, emails, texts, internet and radio reports and peoples stories that bring the harsh reality back to us.
We are very very lucky to be on the side of the island that was not hit. Our house is close to the sea so it does not bear thinking about if the wave came from the opposite direction. I can tell you I will never be blase again about earthquakes and tsunami sirens. You will see my dust if there is even a hint of a problem. I will not wait for any warnings or stop to pick up my cup of tea. I will be out of here. All the places we love here in Samoa are wiped out. This is nothing compared to the people who have lost their homes and loved ones. It is a devastating and saddening time that breaks our hearts.
We are off to volunteer for the Red Cross over the weekend to see what we can do to help although I have just heard from a friend who is over there today who says they will not let her do anything. Times of disaster like this are no time to put people on pedastals or try and protect the palagis.
We are living in a bubble at the moment but hear daily stories of great tragedy. Fellow Librarians who I work with have lost family members. One reports they just found their 2 year old yesterday in the rubble. You cannot even imagine what people are going through. I am in pain and it must be 100 times worse for them.
Seeing the other side of the island will give us perspective on this disaster. We will report back again next week.
Just before I sign off I want to again thank you all for the messages, texts and calls. Your support and caring has meant so much to us and we are so grateful to firstly be alive and secondly have you all as our friends and family.
Faafetai lava
We are very very lucky to be on the side of the island that was not hit. Our house is close to the sea so it does not bear thinking about if the wave came from the opposite direction. I can tell you I will never be blase again about earthquakes and tsunami sirens. You will see my dust if there is even a hint of a problem. I will not wait for any warnings or stop to pick up my cup of tea. I will be out of here. All the places we love here in Samoa are wiped out. This is nothing compared to the people who have lost their homes and loved ones. It is a devastating and saddening time that breaks our hearts.
We are off to volunteer for the Red Cross over the weekend to see what we can do to help although I have just heard from a friend who is over there today who says they will not let her do anything. Times of disaster like this are no time to put people on pedastals or try and protect the palagis.
We are living in a bubble at the moment but hear daily stories of great tragedy. Fellow Librarians who I work with have lost family members. One reports they just found their 2 year old yesterday in the rubble. You cannot even imagine what people are going through. I am in pain and it must be 100 times worse for them.
Seeing the other side of the island will give us perspective on this disaster. We will report back again next week.
Just before I sign off I want to again thank you all for the messages, texts and calls. Your support and caring has meant so much to us and we are so grateful to firstly be alive and secondly have you all as our friends and family.
Faafetai lava
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