NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #31/NN_1992_31.iso/spool/bit/listserv/catholic/3802

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From: [e-mail] (Aris Tanone)
Subject: Flores: A firsthand report.
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Date: Fri, 01 Jan 93 20:36:37 GMT
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    The following is the report of the head of SSpS congregation,
Sister Annemarie Reich SSpS to her congregation, after visiting Flores from
Dec. 17-23.

    It was forwarded by Fr. Hubert Hasulie to paroki-net,--- a network for
Indonesian students abroad, mostly catholic, but also open to the students from
other Christian denomination and even from other religion,--- and I just post
it here to share with you.

        Let us pray for them.......


Aris Tanone
[e-mail]


================================= forwarded message =========================

>Date: 31 Dec 1992 20:27:03 -0500
>From: [e-mail]
>Subject: Flores: Laporan perjalanan.
>Sender: [e-mail]
>To: [e-mail] (Paroki On-line)
>Reply-to: [e-mail]
>Message-id: <[e-mail]>

>  deleted ...... [Introduction by Fr. Hasulie]


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    I was able to visit some of the communities in East Flores from
    December 17th to 23rd and I consider it a special grace to have
    been granted this opportunity to directly share with the sisters
    and the people their immense suffering and affliction.

    Before I talk about the events in detail, I would like to tell
    you that none of our sisters died nor has anyone of them been
    seriously injured.  At the Divine Word Seminary in Ledalero one
    Frater was killed when a wall collapsed; another one died a week
    later from the results of his injuries.  There are others who
    suffered broken arms and legs.

    The epicenter of the quake, which was not of volcanic but of
    tectonic origin, was the Island of Palue north-west of Maumere.
    It affected many islands as wwell as the eastern part of Flores.
    Because of its intensity the earthquake caused numerous deaths
    and enormous damage property. Many people were buried alive
    under the rubble of their collapsed houses.  Probably even more
    died in the tidal wave that followed the earthquake.  In parts
    the waves were as high as 30 meters and totally covered some of
    the smaller populated islands as well as sections of the northern
    coast of Flores.  Although many more people than was initially
    thought, were able to reach safety, the victims of the disaster
    are numerous.  For example, it has been said that 800 of the
    1200 inhabitants of the Island of Babi drowned in the floods.
    We met many of the survivors from the island in the hospital of
    Maumere and in tents on the road from Maumere to Hokeng.

    A third cause of death were the landslides in the wake of the
    earthquake.  Many poor people died in this way because they had
    constructed their houses on the slopes of the hills.  Most of the
    villages and towns look like scenes of total devastation after a
    bomb attack in a war.  There are towns where not a single brick
    house remained intact.  The majority were totally destroyed or
    severely damaged.

    When I arrived in Maumere in the evening of December 17th, I
    saw with my own eyes the extent of the disaster as the sisters
    walked with me through the town.  Maumere had no electricity,
    and because of many broken pipes, the water supply was
    interrupted until the 18th.  The situation improved slightly
    only after that.

    We visited the hospital and saw that the buildings were
    destroyed.  Most of the patients who haad been inside the
    hospital during the earthquake have since left.  Their places
    were taken by the many injured who are sheltered under tents and
    are also treated in the open air.  Here we also met the two SVD
    Fraters who had surgery on the same day.  All two story buildings
    in the main shopping center are no longer standing.  The people
    who have lost their homes have been taken shelter under tents in
    the city square.  They have almost no sanitary facilities, or
    any means of livelihood.

    The focus of the world's attention has so far been Maumere, since
    the town was mentioned in the news and soon afterwards outside
    help arrived.  However, the more remote villages remained without
    help for a long time, since no reporter reached there to gather
    information.  Only on the 18th did a news reporter come with us to
    Hokeng where many of the surrounding villages had been totally
    destroyed.

    We have eight communities in the area most affected by the earth-
    quake -- Mataloko in central Flores has not suffered any signifi-
    cant loss and our buildings in Larantuka in the far East of the
    island remained more or less intact.  I was not able to visit
    these two communities.  Until the day I left, we did not succeed
    in directly contacting our sisters in the small community of
    Belogili, where the clinic building collapsed.

    Our convent church in Maumere was spared.  The house of the
    sisters shows big cracks in the walls, but these can probably
    be repaired.  The middle school, the kindergarten for about 300
    children, and the boarading facilities for eighty girls are
    completely destroyed.  For fear of further after-shocks, which
    were quite frequent in the days immediately following the earth-
    quake, the sisters were eating and sleeping in the open air.

    On December 18th we drove to our provincial house in Hokeng.
    The road had just been opened again for traffic after the army
    had removed a lot of the rubble and repaired the bridges.  On the
    way to Hokeng we came across the survivors of the Island of Babi.
    They had already received tents, mattresses and rice, but blank-
    ets were still missing.  A few kilometers further, the inhabitants
    of some of the fishing villages of the North Coast of Flores, who
    had been rescued, had taken refuge and had found a temporary
    shelter.  They had lost everything and up to then had not received
    any help.  To these, the poorest of the poor, our sisters had
    brought food, blankets and many other things sent from Surabaya
    by our sisters.

    In Hokeng the buildings that housed our postulants, novices and
    junior sisters are no longer habitable.  The sisters sleep in
    tents in the yard.  I was glad to stay with them until the
    following day.  In Hokeng the Minor Seminaary of the SVD is
    almost completely destroyed and the retreat house has been
    damaged.

    On the way back to Maumere we visited our sisters in Kewapante.
    The hospital buildings as well as the convent have not been
     extensively damaged However, the parish church right next to our
    house is destroyed.  Sister Mariflora, the superior of Kewapante,
    has lost her elder sister in the earthquake.  Three houses of her
    relatives are completely ruined.  Quite a number of the relatives
    of the other sisters have lost their homes, but there was no news
    about the death of any other relatives.

    The Major Seminary in Ledalero looks like a place of total
    devastation.  Only the building that houses the museum, the
    kitchen and our convent still stand.  All other buildings have
    collapsed and no one knows where or how to accomodate the more
    than 300 seminarians.  Father General Barlage and the General
    Councilor Fr. Peraso were in Flores at the same time to see what
    could be done.

    On Sunday December 20th I traveled to Lela which does not look
    much better than Ledalero.  Not much is left of the hospital
    almost all buildings are destroyed including the school building
    and the technical equipment can no longer be used.  Sister
    Conchita, the doctor, is treating her patients under a tent in
    the open air.

    There is a second community opposite the hospital -- and these
    buildings also are no longer habitable.  The exception is the
    oldest wooden house, which we had taken over from the Jesuits.  As
    much as is possible the sisters remain in the open, and there
    they also cook.

    Together with Father General I tried to reach Ende on Monday.
    Since the road was still impassible we took a small boat in
    Mauloo -- just big enough for the five of us -- and reached the
    harbor of Ende after four hours.  Ende too has suffered a lot of
    damage, but our convent and the maternity building have remained
    almost intact.  The church of the sisters has been considerably
    damaged.  The SVD has lost almost all the buildings of the
    Brothers' community as well as the school buildings.

    The CIJ sisters, a local congregation, which our Sister Xaver
    accompanied in the early stages of their foundation, lost 15
    convents.  In Ende their school with all that belongs to it and
    the house of the sisters lie in ruins.  One of the sisters was
    killed under collapsed walls, one postulant and two sisters were
    seriously injured.

    I could continue describing the consequences of the earthqauke,
    but there would be no end to it.  A total of 251 primary schools
    are said to be destroyed and in January classes should resume in
    the open air.  This would not be too bad in a tropical climate,
    if it would not have coincided with the rainy season.

    Looking at all the collapsed buildings, it seems unbeleivable
    that there was not more loss of life.  What might explain this is
    the fact that there were two tremors.  After the first strong
    quake, many people were able to seek refuge in the open justt
    before the second quake caused the buildinggs to collapse.  The
    earthquake occured at 13:30.  At 13:00 (1.00 p.m) school closed
    and there were no longer any children in the buildings.  Most of
    the offices in the towns had closed for the lunch break.  In
    addition, it was Saturday and at noon the shopping center of
    Maumere closed.  Anyone who has ever witnessed the crowds in the
    shopping center of Maumere, can imagine what a catastrophe it would
    have been, had the the earthquake happened at the time of business.
    We have to thank the Lord that he has so obviously placed his
    protecting hand over Flores.

    Most of the people are still in shock and paralyzed to such a
    degree that they cannot yet gather their strength and become
    active again.  They seem numb and completely given over their
    fate.  They need help -- human assistance, comfort and the
    encouragement of others.

    Material help reached the island from many countries almost
    immediately after the disaster.  Many countries gave generously.
    However, since the world initially knew only about Maumere,
    most of the aid went to this town.

    There were difficulties in the distribution process.  As a result
    the goods accumulated in one place while the victims were left
    without essential items.

    Nevertheless, I had the impression that much was done to help and
    that especially the army offered effective assistance.  Since
    public servants and the military have great confidence in religious
    our sisters were able to participate in the various operations.

    Dear Sisters, I thank you for your concern and your prayer for
    our fellow sisters in Floresd and for the whole suffering
    population  on the island.

    This year Christmas in Flores will look like the first Christmas
    -- God will come, that is certain -- God will come to a people
    in great poverty and distress, to people who no longer have
    home.  May God grant them special Love.

                    Sr. Annemarie Reisch, SSpS

    December 24, 1992

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hubert

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