At about 10:30pm Monday
night it hit. We’d been waiting for it since about 7; the promised high
wind/cyclone that has delayed our ship yet again and has left us all packed up
with nowhere to go.
We’ve been working 6 ½
day weeks for the past 4 weeks with a goal in mind to be finished here and
ready to move on to Nanumaga in line with delivery of our equipment and ferry
schedules. After all the delays in getting our equipment unloaded here, and the
realisation that logistics will be one of our biggest challenges out here, it
seemed sensible to work harder and faster, giving ourselves the biggest
possible window filled with the most potential transport options to move on.
On Thursday morning we
had news that the Komaiwai was unbelievably running ahead of schedule and might
be ready to sail past Vaitupu for a pick up as early as Saturday morning. All
our hard efforts seemed worth it. We could be finished. We could be ready and
packed in time. We worked until 11pm Thursday night and were back on site by
7am the next morning.
And the site looks
incredible. The new Vaitupu powerhouse is an impressive piece of engineering;
the result of months of planning, agonisingly detailed calculations,
measurements and drawings and a shipload of the finest German technology that
money can buy.
|
The finished inverter corridor in the powerhouse |
Amidst the frenzy of
finishing last week, we opened its doors to the local community. On Thursday the
primary school students and their parents came to visit. Still dressed in our
sweaty, grubby work clothes, we were presented with beautifully made floral
wreaths and a woven basket of coconuts that we devoured within minutes of their
all heading home for lunch.
On Friday morning the
high school students arrived; ferried in by their Fijian teachers and primed
with good questions. Thankfully no-one asked if the generator amp setting on
the master Sunny Island was drawing the correct current from the generator… we
were still tinkering.
|
Fifty visiting 16 and 17-year olds crammed into the battery room |
That night we
celebrated everything we’ve achieved here so far with a spectacular feast.
Hosted by our wonderful Fijian housemates, we ate crab and reef fish and
breadfruit cooked in coconut milk and chilli and fresh made roti and a local
fern, which has become our primary source of greens. The boys were dressed in
brilliantly loud and colourful shirts and I finally had an excuse to bring out
the Tuvaluan outfit which I had had made in Funafuti. As the night warmed up
and our gin ration stretched, we sang songs of farewell and safe passage. We
have been promised that if PowerSmart comes to do a project in Fiji, we will be
feasting every night.
|
Celebrating with our Fijian housemates |
And so like sad prom
dates, we are waiting at the curb for the limo. And a cyclone is coming.
It rained horizonally
for most of the day on Tuesday. The sparser of the coconut trees by the wharf,
trying to stand solo against the wind, look weary, and someone has started
moving boats off the harbour ramp. Apparently one was swept up on the water and
came crashing down again. It has holes.
By 8:30am Wednesday
morning, it’s high tide. There is a crowd gathering in front of the
meetinghouse above the wharf. Some of the locals report that they’ve not seen
weather like this since the storm of 1991. Waves have been pushing higher all
morning sweeping rubbish up onto the streets. Two coconut trees have given way
and come crashing down. With each set that comes in, the marker pole at the end
of the wharf disappears in a spray of white and another wall of blue appears
just behind it. There is no conceivable way that a little barge with a 40hp
engine would make it through that harbour entrance unscathed. On a day like
today, no ships will even be allowed to fix to Funafuti wharf; they are bobbing
like corks in the middle of the lagoon, waiting just like us.
|
Storm watchers
|
|
Vaitupu harbour under siege |
|
Assessing the storm damage |
|
Easy to reach these coconuts! |
Weather report released
Monday night…
Tuesday and Wednesday:
North to north-easterly winds 15 to 25 knots gusting to 30 knots over open
waters. Seas rough with westerly swells 3 to 4 metres. Thursday? Westerly
swells 4 to 5 metres.
This afternoon we
wanted to see for ourselves what damage this weather is causing. As we head to
the western tip of the island we see pig pens washed away and outdoor kitchens
being reinforced in anticipation of high tide which is due tonight. At the tip
of the island, we traipse through the mud and peak out through the Pandanas
palms. Something doesn’t look right. I realise that the horizon isn’t flat. It
looks like a rolling mountain range; all dark green with snow-capped peaks.
There is a point on the horizon where the very western-most corner of the reef
is reaching out into the ocean and a great pyramid of water is pushed into the
air. The wave peaks and breaks from this point, rolling toward us. I’ve never
seen waves like this. My sandy, coconut tree covered, 2m high atoll, perched in
the middle of this enormous ocean, feels very precarious right now.
|
Team outing to check out the waves on the western tip of the island |
And to top it all off, we
are on diesel rations again. We are down to our last 235L of fuel and the
generator will only come on for 3 hours tonight and then another 3 hours
tomorrow morning. With it our communications with the rest of the world as the
satellite uplink relies on the generator and reasonably clear skies. I will try
to get this post out tonight but it may be a few days before you hear from us
again. It’s time to hunker down. To drink too many cups of tea and spend half
the day scurrying to the bathroom. Or perhaps to bring out the scotch whiskey
and work on our fantastical stories of the Tuvalu storm of 2015.
|
Building a mountain of empty diesel drums |
Hi Folks
ReplyDeleteHope you are all ok and that the big blow didn't damage your good work!
Big hugs for my little Bro Roger
Helen
Hi Folks
ReplyDeleteHope you are all ok and that the big blow didn't damage your good work!
Big hugs for my little Bro Roger
Helen
I'm loving the blog, and please wish Shane a happy island birthday from me when you have power to spare to read this. =]
ReplyDelete(I'm going to pretend the reason I'm so late in writing this is me moving house and just getting the internet on. But really the library is 10 minutes walk away so my excuse is pretty flimsy.)
I hope you guys and the locals come out of the weather well.
Jun
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