I recently returned to Fiji after
taking an amazing trip to New Zealand. More on that in a later posting…
We escaped Fiji at just the right
time. Our flight that day was one of the last ones out of Fiji for several
days. A tropical storm was brewing in the South Pacific and heading right for
the main island. It started blowing and pouring rain the night before our
scheduled flight. On our ride to the airport that morning, we saw roads already
flooded. The town of Nadi, near where the international airport is located, was
reportedly underwater. The worst was yet to come.
After a 6 hour delay, we were
cleared for takeoff and soon were flying up and out and above the storm toward
the calmer winds and sunny skies of NZ. Over the next several days and
throughout the next week of our vacation, we heard the news reports of what was
happening back on the islands. The storm had been upgraded to a cyclone and was
wreaking havoc on the western side of Viti Levu: the airport was shut down for
several days; Nadi was severely flooded with store-front windows shattering
from the pressure; washed out roads and collapsed bridges; power and water outages;
homes underwater, people evacuated and homeless; Sigatoka town, near my
village, also reported flooding from the rising river and the nearby creeks and
streams that run throughout the valley region.
In the days that followed, we
continued to hear reports about stranded travelers, flooded towns and villages,
and the resulting cleanup and potential health issues. We continued our
vacation without really knowing how bad the flood had been at our individual
sites and what we might be going back to. We knew from the news that the
appropriate government ministries, along with the Red Cross and other NGO’s,
were mobilizing in response to the “crisis.” From some email communication with
other volunteers back in Fiji, we could confirm what we had been hearing on the
news: the western side of Viti Levu was battered and flooding was extensive.
My village, which is in this region,
has never flooded and lies in a relatively well-protected valley. But I was
aware that other villages in the area had a history of flooding and some of the
access roads from town could be in poor condition. So, again, I didn’t really
know what conditions I might be facing on returning to the village.
Almost 3 weeks after the storm
initially hit, I returned to Fiji.
From the airport, I called my
counterpart in the village to let him know I was back in country and heading
home. He said the bridge along the access road into the village was “broken.” I
asked how I would get back into the village and he said they would meet me at
the bridge and show me the way across. I had hoped to get there before sundown
but the timing of transportation didn’t work out that way and it was quite dark
when I arrived at the top of the road that goes into my village.
The dirt road into the village slopes
down about 75 meters before coming to a concrete bridge that crosses a small
creek about 5-7 meters wide (in normal conditions). Two of my neighbors were
waiting for me there with flashlights to show me the way. In the dark, I could
not see the extent of the damage but from the path their lights were directing
me toward I could sense that most of the road on either side of the bridge was
washed out. We scooted down the embankment and crossed over the stream on a
narrow wooden walkway that had been built. Another smaller version crossed a
narrower section where the stream had split into two – a diversion of the water
obviously created from the flood.
In the hours that followed, I
learned of the events of the past 2 ½ weeks; and in the following morning, I was
able to see for myself in the light of day the damage to the village and the
surrounding area. My village had flooded for the first time in its history,
they say. The stream had swelled and overrun its banks on that side of the
village. Fortunately, only a few houses sit that close to the bank where they
actually had water come into the house. My bure is about 30 meters or so from
the stream and was untouched by the overflow. However, my kitchen facility,
which lies about 10 meters from the stream, had about a foot of water, I’m
told. It was all cleaned up by the time I returned but I could see the water
line on the concrete structure.
After the initial flooding, which
occurred during that first weekend that the storm hit, the rains continued for
2 weeks. Power was out for several days and water was out for 2 weeks! The
water had just been restored on Monday (I returned on Wednesday). Our village
gets its water from a municipal source that is piped into most households. In
the absence of that (relatively safe) treated source, people rely on either
rain catchment tanks (not too bad) or the stream (probably bad). Water from the
stream should be boiled and filtered before use for drinking or cooking. I was
thankful that I missed 2 weeks of poor water conditions. My experience here has
taught me that if I had to choose between heat, electricity or water, I would
choose water at the sacrifice of any other convenience.
I walked back down to the bridge so
I could see the damage in daylight. The stream bed, which is normally about
10-15 meters wide, had been “recut” by the flood to 4 times that width. The
road on either side of the concrete bridge was washed completely away leaving a
10 foot drop on either side. The bridge itself was leaning slightly. Debris
(branches, stones, mud, some rubbish) littered the entire area. The men had
built the small bridges across the stream – now back to its normal size – for
pedestrians but there would be no vehicle access for a few days (until Public
Works showed up with a bulldozer to clear a new path down either side of the
embankment and across a shallow section of the stream so at least large
vehicles (vans, trucks) could get through).
The rest of the village seems
relatively untouched by the flood. Some of the families who had water come into
their houses have been advised to relocate away from the stream. Most of the
cleanup had been completed before I returned. One interesting positive result
from the whole event is that the newly widened stream bed has uncovered some
new sources of clay for the women to use in their pottery-making. I’m told that
further upstream there are deposits in nice colors of brown, red and white.
Beyond the village, the aftermath
from the floods can be seen all along the valley road back into town: mud
slides resulting in narrowing sections of the road; potholes and crumbling
edges in the road; debris throughout the area. The neighboring village was apparently
underwater – although this is not unusual for them since they lie in a low area
closer to the main river. Even the town experienced some storefront flooding
from the swollen Sigatoka River and all along it there are deposits of mud and
debris. Many are saying this is worse than the floods of 2006 – which were
notoriously remembered throughout the region. Sounds like now we have a new
benchmark.
Throughout the week since I’ve been
back, the government and cooperating NGO’s are performing surveys and
assessments, providing relief and services to damaged communities. Because of
the extent of the interruption in water supplies, certain health concerns are
being closely watched. Typhoid outbreaks can be common in situations like this
but there have been none reported in my area. Many folks in my village seem to
have eye infections – possibly from using stream water for bathing during the
outage – but they are getting treated. The Red Cross has visited the village
and supplied basic first aid kits and medical supplies. The District Office is
reported to be supplying food in the upcoming weeks as many of the farms that
were flooded had damaged and unrecoverable crops.
The damage and aftermath in my
village seems manageable compared to other communities in the region. Everyone
is safe and relatively healthy. While I feel sorry for what they had to endure
during the storm and resulting floods, I feel lucky that my timing was such
that I was out of the country for the whole thing. Fijians seem to have a knack
for taking these conditions in stride. I’m not sure I would have fared as well
had I been here to experience the full force of it.
One family in the neighboring
village threw a tarp over the bus shed on the road and slept there for a few
days until the water receded out of their home. This is a family consisting of
a mother with two teenage daughters and their grandmother. No big deal.
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| Bridge on village access road before flood |
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| After flood - road washed out on both sides |
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| Notice how wide the stream bed is now - the water ran high and wide! |
