Tsunami

At about 8 pm we had a call from Jenita at VSO in Vila telling us of the Tsunami in Japan and that it was expected in Vanuatu about 1am. We were advised to spend the night on higher ground. We also had a call from William, Annie's brother and a text from Nicola. Annie went off to stay with a New Zealand volunteer who lives slightly up the hill and Rupert went up to the hospital which is on top of the hill overlooking Luganville. Many people made their way up the hill with sleeping mats and their children. Many camped out on the old higher airfield under the stars (and the occasional shower). About 200 came to spend the night in the Out Patient department or along the covered walkways round the hospital. Everyone was resigned and stoical. They are used to these warnings (three in the last 2 years) and they take them seriously. They know generally they will be alright but they had genuine anxiety for their relatives on other islands especially on lower lying islands. There was also concern about the people of the atoll nations like Kiribasi and Tuvalu.

We had hourly bulletins and about 1.30am heard that PNG and the Solomons had had about 0.5 metre wave. It must have passed us about this time and after 2am many (including Rupert) drifted home though some spent the night high up.
Next morning Annie and I went for a dip in Segond channel and were surprised that the tide seemed to flowing slightly stronger than normal (I stress we were in our depths and it was not flowing fast, just enough for us to drift towards town). However we were doubly surprised when about 10 minutes later we found we were drifting back down the coast in the opposite direction. So obviously the ocean is still upset.
So exciting times, first cyclones then a tsunami. Oh, for a quiet life., so back home now for a beer, avocado pear and a kip.

PS Lucy, one of the VSO vols had been up on an isolated island in the Banks Islands giving an HIV seminar. She celebrated Friday night at the end of the seminar with a few shells of Kava with the chief and slept soundly. Next morning the village were somewhat surprised to see the lagoon emptying and filling, as in high and low tide, about every 20 minutes. The Pacific Ocean was obviously still swilling around and upset.