RF_DM-3_ORI-4_SUDHA.pdf
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RANI BHAVAN,
GOPALPUR-ON-SEA
i-: a--. :Ut ) • 761 GO?
ORISSA
Dalt 0 3
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Mdell - LCtSUevs,
Thank you very much
\Ne are overwhelmed by the generous response to our appeal to
support the relief and rehabilitation of Cyclone victims. As a result
we were able to render timely relief to the families in our villages.
We are at the initial stage of rehabilitation activities like
reconstruction of houses and supporting livelihood activities for the
affected families.
Ch
6ORV
In the name of hundreds of affected families we thank you for your
contribution which has significantly mitigated the sufferings of the
cyclone victims.
We will keep you informed about the on going rehabilitation
activities.
Once again thanking you and wishing you a prosperous Millennium
Year 2000.
Yours sincerely
J v ^aXAA<ZXvW<2
Sr.Margaret
?
Sr.Mariamma
yd c&WcM M
«»
SV'
'S.
- o
Sr. Sa haya
■^3,^4.
o.
SAVE US LORD WE ARE PERISHING
Schools had Puja Holidays, our class X students were having
On 28th morning at 9. 00 a. m. Port Authorities
special classes,
asked us to stop the special classes and send the children home
So we sent the children back home at 9. 30 a. m.
As
immediately,
soon as the children reached home one of the officers from 'Radar
station’ rang up and asked me as to why we sent the children back
home within an hour when the cyclone is 550km away from Paradeep,
I answered him saying that I am concerned about my children and
their safety, But he was not willing to own the seriousness of
the cyclone.
October 28th,
1999 marked the begining of a prolonged
disaster which robbed the people of their thatched and asbestos
roofs and rendered them homeless. It was not a sudden arousal of
thretening and roaring winds rather its emergence in the sea had
been announced the same day. Paradip Port Officials had sounded a
red alert on October 28th, warning of an impending cyclone of
great intensity. The State Govt, had instructed the adminstration
to evacuate people and stock relief materials. The Army had also
been put on alert. Despite all these Govt, had no idea of the
enormity of the crisis on hand. The authorities were aware that a
cyclone had struck Paradip but did not immidiately know that the
tidal waves rising upto 12 meters had submerged several areas in
.Jagatsinghpur Dist. (Our Dist. ) and Kendrapara Dist.
The Super
cyclone affected 11 districts of Orissa.
Inspite of repeated warnings the people took it lightly
because the people in Paradip had experienced many cyclones but
they were not as devastating and merciless as this one. The local
commitees and Port Trust tried hard to evacuate the people to
safer places but hardly reached their goals. People paid no need
and were charged with heavy penalty.
On 28th Oct.
drizzling started at 12 noon, the sky was
overcast with dark clouds and it presented a gloomy scene all
around. It further intensified and wind was blowing with speed
between 130 to 180 km/hr.
Gale winds started to blow at 200km/hr by 2. 00 a. m. in the
morning of 29th Oct. 11intensified with time. At nearly 4. 00. m.
emerged the furious cyclone with its devastating weapons. The
electricity went off at once and we realized that we are cut off
completely from outside world. Huge waves reaching up to a height
of 33ft. were witnessed by the nearby people. We were busy bolting
the windows and doors and tieing them up tightly. One minute the
wind roared; then a brief lull of about half a minute punctuated
by something like a long shrill whistle; the next moment the roar
was back with the wind pounding the walls, The velocity of the wind
kept on increasing with heavy rains, Rain water was pouring in
doors. Window panes and doors were blown off
through windows and doors,
As
we
were
busy putting out the rain water from our
by 7. 00 a. m.
the
chapel,
we could hear the computer room
1iving rooms and
windows being shattered. When we came to pull out the computers,
Q ’
we could see the ground floor doors being opened with locks on.
It was around 8. 00 a. m.
when we came down we could see the water
coming in through the locked doors. Hurriedly we pulled out the
on our heads
files from the filing cabinet and carried them
minutes upto
because the ground floor got flooded within three
records,
amplifiers,
a height of 4. 5 ft. We could save only the
tape
recorders and the telephone
set.
Since our library,
bookstore,
laboratories, storerooms and the pump sets were on
laboratories,
the
ground floor, we lost
things worth lakhs of rupees, We
never expected the tidal waves. Our sintex water tanks were blown
off and they were carried away by the sea waves.
When we looked
out through the windows we could see that the compound wall on
three sides was washed away. The screams of the wind were threa
tening to blow off anything which may come across its way.
The intensified cyclone gained stability due to which
the gusty winds blew for a long period with a velocity of 320
km/hr. There were no trees left in the vicinity. Since we are
surrounded by creeks the tidal wave rose quickly and we could
not come out of the building. There were snakes, animal carcasses,
dead bodies and added to it, a crocodile 10 ft. long in the
creek surrounding our campus. The crocodile was spilt out from
Nehru park of Paradip. Since the current was very strong we
could not bring the parish priest to our building. He was with
his cook in the parish house. The Whole of Paradip was flooded
with sea water nearly about 48 hours. One can imagin us in Noah' s
Ark, water all around and also within as our windows were not
very strong. We could only pray to the Lord in our helplessness
saying "Lord save us we are presishing. We could not sleep the
whole night. On 30th morning we could see only water everywhere,
The people in the slum areas rushed to take shelter in the
schools, colleges & in pakka houses on 29th night. But most of
them were washed away by the strong current. It seemed that
Paradip was an island in the Bay of Bengal. Though there was water
all around still there was no water to drink. As the water
there was looting and robbary.
receded on 31st early morn ing,
People who left their houses on ground floor and occupied the
lost everything due to tidal
first floor of their neighbour,
collected
the
rain water to drink. The
wave and robbary. We
water on terrace & the water in the classrooms in the second
floor was used to bathe. to wash & to clean till 2nd of November.
Our school had knee deep slush & dirty mud on the ground floor.
On 31st October when we went out we could see the
death and devastation. Paradip township was completely devoid of
the green colour. The rotting bodies and carcasses posed a major
threat to the survivors of the Super Cyclone. Paradip was inaccessible for the first four days. As the roofs of godowns were
blown off, the food grains & vegetables were rotten which gave
rise to food problem. All electric installations were uprooted.
The electric substations were badly damaged. The water supply,
all had fallen to the nature's fury.
dredging channels, godowns.
Paradip Police Station, Telephone and Television towers have been
badly damaged. All kinds of communication was disrupted.
j j to ships and P. P. T buildings
In Paradip Port no j
damage
and
trawlers
sank in the Paradip Port.
was caused. Several tugs
damaged
on
a
large
scale. Tiny villages along
Boats and nets were
coast
have
been
turned
into
lakes
blotting
out all signs of
the
habitation. Debris of houses were found floating m the
human
Bodies
were found trapped under the debris. As the water
water,
recede,
the stench of putrefied bodies and carcasses
to
began
the
air.
The
Paradip creek reeked with bloated bodies.
pervaded
than 700 people were reported to be dead in Paradip alone,
More
Movers and dumpers scooped them up, while Port employees cremate
The survivors, meanwhile looked around for food. Man came
them,
his primitive self, search for food and shelter began.
It
to 1at this time that we all realised that this super cyclone not
was ;
also given risej to
only caused death and devastation but it has
.
It
not only made many
many problems like food, water and shelter.
total
loss
in Paradip is
people homeless but also orphans. The
estimated to be about 70 crores.
Added to all inconveniences we were worried about our Sr.
Agnes who
tor seminar on B.
o. C.
o. C
o to
uo Mangalore and was
had gone for
supposed to leave for Paradip on 28th Oct. She had not reached
till 2nd Nov. Thank God she reached Paradip on 2nd Nov.
facing the looting on the way. Her train was diverted to Sambalpur and she didn't even know about it untill she was asked to
get down at Sambalpur. There were two families who were travelbrought her safe to Cutling to Cuttack along with her. They
that day. Hence, she
tack. And the road to Paradip was opened on
could travel to Paradip but she was forced out of the bus twice
on the way and was asked to surrender her belongings, By the
grace of God and with the powerful protection of Father Founder
she could manage to come back home safely.
27th were
Our students who had gone for athletic meet on comfort the
held up at Cuttack till the 2nd‘ ”Nov..We could not
we could bring them[ as
we could only assure 1them
--- that
-parents,
soon as the roads were opened.
bodies in the
At the back of the school there were 37 deadnot
able to move
looting
everywhere
and
we
were
creek, There was
Paradip
and the
moved into
freely. On Nov 2nd evening the Army
I
us
to
give
them
the
shelter,
administration requested
District
the
looting
was
stopped.
One of
all L..
Once the Army moved in,
.
__i
201
Engineering
Regiment
had
' . M. S. Neddy from
the Captains,Capt.
with
Additional
Teshildar
of
Kujang
dared to take his .jawans along v,---- ----fc the God
Ersama block and he saw thousands
God forsaken
forsaken villages
villages of
of Ersama
of 'bodies
lying
all
around.
He
and^ narrated the same
bodies
all
L- came
----- back
scene to
to US.
us. Hence
I accompanied them on the 2nd day 1. e. On 6th
;
Nov
and saw
m water, bloated
and
saw for myself thousands of bodies in
When ’I
and upside
I got choked and stopped counting.
upside idown.
ladies.
the
reached Ambiki
Amb i k i young and old hugged me specially
.
I
had
tears
Because I was the first lady to enter those villages,
There
was
fear
but they had no tears. Their tears were exhausted. ..
People
were
orand shock on their faces. They were shaken up.
3
I
phaned. Parents were without children, children without parents,
wives without husbands, ]husbands without wives and children.
My
children.
heart sank and I decided to be with these"
j
people.
Human
dead
----bodies and carcass of animals i
‘
were 'lying
side by side. People in
these villages whoj are washed out caught hold
coconut palms or
terraced roofs and were there for four days up
without
food
without
food and
water. People are burned along with cattle under the debris.
Of all the regions,
the Ersama block of Jagatsinghpur
d i st.
was the m o s t ^f^epted. Out of 24 Panchayats in ErsaSa,
Ambi ki was w n r s t affected with 2750 deaths followed by Padmapur
with 2040 deaths
of
non
2006- Ersama block alone has a
death toll ot
20,000. A total of 50 ’villages were completely
washed out in Ersama,
Ersama, Balikuda, Kujang, Tirtol
and Nuagapn
b 1 ocks.
The estimated loss in our dist. is about 800 crores
25
lakhs ku t c h a houses
---- j or huts are damaged and 50,000 cattle are
reported to have died, The tidal waves completely washed away the
mud houses and the wind also helped it by carrying away the roofs
of the houses, There was not
a single thatched house to be seen
in the area. All were gone forever,
The people in thousands took
shelter under concreet roofs,
All their belongings were carried
away by the cyclone. There
here was
was no one to cry for them, no one to
care for them, no one to look after them and no one to bother
them. There was no OnK t0 feed them, no one to provide them clean
drinking water. lhey had to starve for three or four days,
loss of near and dear ones, shelter, food grains and all At the
life
sustainingThey
belongings
,
mentally.
r~igL
section_of People have been upset
are frightened at the gloomy future, The number of
such psychological patients have
I
been increasing. Within a month,
more than 100 people have commited suicide
out of frustration.
Schools have been damaged. Dieseases like
Jaundice,
Typhoid,
falaria, caugh, cold,
cold. diarrhoea and other ailments
-- j are common.
On 7th Nov.
two of us
went
J. 2.
to N. A. C. office and met the
A. D. M. project Director and the additional
-- ?1 Teshildar and told them
that if the dead bodies ;are not disposed
off,
j then there is every
possibility of the epidemic. I told
them
that
if we do not act
immediately we may kill those who are alive.
Then
the additional
Project Director Mr. G. Singh asked us to go ahead with
the disposal of the bodies, He promised all kind
of
support;
hence we
were the ones who initiated this process
in
Ersama
and
around,
The Collector came to thank us personally for this work.
OF. TILE. BZSpOWx OF r-FAb BODIES. AND
Pat ft
P1 a ft ft
CARCASSFSfhv r> i j r t ft a m ’)
Dead bodies
Carcasses
8. 11, 99
Thalkonds. Canal
27
35
9. 11. 99
Sourabha
46
83
10. 11. 99
Sourabha Chakka
61
60
4
• O
11. 11. 99
Way to Nagari Bridge
101
136
12. 11. 99
Nagari, Kiada
13]
82
13. 11. 99
Kiada
76
72
14. 11. 99
Kiada and Way to Ambiki
60
38
15. 11. 99
Way to Ambiki
95
88
16. 11. 99
Ambiki
76
147
17. 11. 99
Sanga(Ambiki)
81
102
18. 11. 99
Godo Vishnupur (Way)
98
137
19. 11. 99
20. 11. 99
Bengali Pada(Ambiki)
Kankan
97
62
168
88
22. 11. 99
Kankan
16
34
23. 11. 99
Ramtara
11
14
We teamed up with M. C Brothers and 60 volunteers
from
Catholic Relief Services, and literally lifted the bodies, either
cremeated or buried them.
We had 36 local volunteers. We organised them in each
village }and gave them incentives like food for work,
utensils etc. .We helped the villagers to rebuild their clothing,
houses,
taught them hygiene and made them to clean their sorroundings. We
have made them to construct the approach
-- 11 roads with the help of
our volunteers.
We & M. C. sisters went from
from place
place to place
distributing medicines and rations. Now that
that the
the preliminary
needs are met, we have the long term rehabilitation
i. e. , providing shelter to the orphans,
educating the villagers. We also
picked up the mentally disturbed people and sent them
for
treatment,
We have the co-operation of S. 0. Ss
villages
to
take care of the orphaned children. For the
re-habilitation
of
the villages and schools we have enlisted the
co-operation of
L&T Paradip, h
H.. p.
P. rParadip,0. C. P. L Paradip & Jayashree Trad ing
Corporation, Paradip.
We thank them for their support in the
relief work.
Another one year they can not grow anything in the
paddy field because saline water has caused devastation, The salt
making process of the costal area has been badly affected, Due to
the upsurge of the high tide, the prawn culture fields have been
inundated by the sea water and have been washed away
causing
serious loss to the people engaged in prawn business.
'The huge
loss of boats, nets, ropes and fishing articles has put
a question mark on the livlihood of thousands of p
poor fishermen of the
costal belt, We have gone 100 years back and will take
- --- ; many- more
years to make up the Joss.
What next ?
Provide winter clothing
Provide utensils
Try to make available interest free loans.
♦
- fertilizers to cyclone affected areas.
- provision of seeds.
- employment
- safe drinking water
- masquito oil or nets
- food for work
- check air and water pollution.
- reconstruct schools and colleges.
- construct cyclone relief centres which can function as schools
- provide school going children with books and bags.
We have re-opened our school on 1st Dec. Around 300
students have lost their houses, e 1 o t he s an d b o o ks. We have provided them with books, clothes, uniforms,
shoes, tarpaulines,
blankets and stoves. We also provided food for some families,
None of our student is lost. But one of our Mausis
Mau sis CIV class
employee) is washed away with her husband, One of our student' s
father is lost in the sea during the cyclone. He has not come
back from f i shing. The student is in class I.
We are sincerely thankful to our Provincial Superior
for her sincere concern. She is the first one who wrote to us
expressing deep anxiety and concern. Her letter did bring us
consolation and affirmed that we are precious and cared for.
She
sent Sr. Miriam and Sr. Jane Chantal to see how we were
Sr.
Miriam stayed with us for a week and joined us the relief work.
Sr. Nora had asked Berhampur sisters to visit us. They visited us
twice and brought with them provisions for us. We do appreciate
their kind gesture. We are also thankful to Sr. Alodia, Staff and
students of St.
Thersa's Convent School, Karnal for sending
Rs. 50,000 for our needy people, This amount will he utilized for
rehabilitation and reconstruction specially for the school going
children.
We thank the Lord for keeping us from all harm and
danger.
In Our agony and despair our one and only comfort and
hope was Jesus. Our loss is repairable but the loss of our p eop ] e
is irrepairable.
"Comfort my people, comfort -" says the
Lord, The world around us is full of misery. How can we be sleeping - — ? Millions have been left destitute and families are torn
asunder. Our people are struggling to cope with the ravages of a
devastating Super Cyclone. Let' s be the parteners in the process
of restoration, rehabilitation and reconstruction.
******oooooo*******
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