“There
was a loud noise, then the sea rose and washed over our island.
Seven people died and more than hundred had to be picked up
from the sea,” says 41-year-old Ali Adam. “Now parts
of the island are gone, and nothing is left of our houses.”
Ali Adam and his family escaped with minor injuries when the
26 December tsunami struck the Maldives, but lost all their
belongings and their house. The devastation on some islands
was extraordinary. Thick brick walls were blown apart by the
pressure of the waves, concrete structures flattened and heavy
water tanks tossed about like corks.
More than a third of the country’s 199 inhabited islands
were completely flooded. Many of these islands are tiny, but
they are home to numerous communities. Being low-lying, they
are exceptionally vulnerable to high seas. Waves up to four
meters killed 82 people and injured a further 1,313. It is a
miracle that the death toll wasn’t higher.
Houses, health centres and schools were reduced to rubble. Social
and economic infrastructures have been left devastated.
Fourteen islands have been so badly hit that they are deemed
uninhabitable.
Federation relief coordinator Jim Robertson says the effects
of the tsunami were varied across the islands, which are grouped
in atolls stretching 850 kilometres north to south.
“Certain islands were not touched at all, others partially
damaged, and some completely destroyed. Even within one small
island you see big differences because of the topography,”
he explains.
Piles of stones, branches and other debris are now neatly piled
next to gaping holes in walls, exposing what was once someone’s
kitchen or bedroom and bearing witness to the massive force
experienced on the day the disaster hit.
A few meters away from an undamaged house lies a pile of corrugated
iron, furniture, clothes and kitchenware. A painted sign, marking
what was once a family’s home, is hanging on a branch
above the pile, like a gravestone.
Almost 10 per cent of the Maldives’ population of 290,000
was displaced as a result of the disaster. According to the
government’s National Disaster Management Center (NDMC),
70 per cent of the inhabited islands need urgent repair or reconstruction.
Mundoo, in Laamu atoll in the south of the country, was one
of the hardest hit islands. Now only 35 people of the original
785 inhabitants remain. Some are staying in temporary relief
camps, while others have been taken in by other families.
From fish factory to family shelter
Ali Adam and his family were evacuated and now live with more
than 200 others from Mundoo in a relief camp set up in an old
fish factory on Gan Island. Nearby is another camp with 60 people
from Kalaidhoo, another island that was completely destroyed.
The government, together with organizations such as the International
Federation, have provided basic relief items such as food, water
and blankets. The International Federation has also supplied
32 generators – providing vital electricity for functions
such as running water desalination plants.
The Federation is also providing material for constructing temporary
shelters on affected islands. To date, over 20,000 sheets of
corrugated iron have been brought in by the Red Cross. Some
of this stock will also be used for future construction projects.
In the camp, children are playing football on the lawn in front
of the factory buildings. Others are studying together with
a group of women in the shade under a tree. Clothes lines are
hanging between the buildings, and food is being cooked in a
large communal kitchen in the old factory cafeteria. Inside
the large factory halls, plywood walls are set up to provide
at least a modicum of privacy for each family. Some rooms have
bunk beds while others have only mattresses on the floor.
While the women take turns cooking and cleaning, the men fish
and help with construction and maintenance needs within the
camp. The camp seems well organized, but the time passes slowly
and people are impatient to move into proper housing.
“We are six to eight people in each room, and it is difficult
to live on top of each other. Our main priority now is to get
a new house, only after that we can get back to normal,”
says Ali Adam.
Red Cross takes the lead in building and repairs
The NDMC estimates 2,000 new houses are required and the Red
Cross has committed to building 1,300. Of these, 800 are part
of a Federation initiative and the other 500 will be constructed
by a French Red Cross project. The German Red Cross has committed
to repairing and re-equipping almost half of the health facilities
that have been identified for urgent redevelopment.
There is an awareness of balancing the urgency of the housing
needs with providing appropriate and acceptable dwellings.
“We need to work as quickly as possible, but it is also
important to make good plans, take the community’s needs
into consideration, get high quality material and ensure that
the houses will last for a long time,” says French Red
Cross’ representative Sandra Hu.
The first batch of the new houses the French Red Cross will
build for the displaced people in Laamu is expected to be finished
by the end of the year.
Housing is a priority for the affected people, but many do not
want to return to their home islands – some because all
the houses and infrastructure have been wiped out, while others
are still fearful another tsunami will strike. The government
is planning construction on new and safer islands, where whole
communities will be given the opportunity to resettle.
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Many
islands were exceptionally vulnerable and were devastated
by the tsunami (p12763)
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Ali
Adam's house and all his families possessions on Mundoo
island were simply washed away. He is now staying in a
converted fish factory on Gan (p12759)
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The
force of the waves literally tore walls apart (p12760)
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The
days sometimes feel long for the displaced people in Kalaidhoo
relief camp in Gan (p12761)
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Many
homes have been damaged beyond repair (p12762)
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News
