January 2009
Dear Friends, Brethren and Family
Bula Vinaka!
There has been some delay getting this out as the internet supplier did not
have electricity.
The rains came down and the floods........
Well, where can I say it started........ This is the rainy season in Fiji.
It is also the cyclone season. January 1st we had low voltage for three
hours and on the 2nd & 3rd we had over 6 inches of rain. Then this week
on Thursday-Friday (9th & 10th) we received over 17 inches of rain. The
house we are living in is in a somewhat low-laying area and we have a lot of
run -off from the surrounding area. Since moving in last September we have experienced
flooding in the back section of the yard but then it drains out back through
the cane fields behind our back fence. Well Tuesday we had afternoon showers.
Thursday a tropical depression (04F) developed West of Vanuatu and headed Southeast
in our direction. Thursday and early Friday we had over 17" of rain with
squally winds. This washed our some power lines and Thursday at 5:30 pm our
electricity went off and was off over 24 hours. Friday morning when I got up
the water was the highest we had experienced but it was receding. It had come
within an inch of coming in the side door. I had gone into town to check mail
and a Christmas box from Terasa came with a hand crank flashlight. How timely.
When the power came back on Friday night at 7:30 pm it was only 178 volts (we
are supposed to have 240v) and the fluorescent lights would not come on. Friday
night the tropical depression brushed Fiji and we had over 5 more inches of
rain. Saturday morning the power went off and the weather was deteriorating
and the water level in the yard was rising. By noon I had gotten everything
off the floor in my office which is 4 inches lower then the rest of the house
thinking that if the rains quit only the office floor would flood - wrong! (Earlier
I had gone over to the police station in the downpour and talked with the policeman
about road conditions and he told me in all his years there he had NEVER seen
our yard flood like this.
Water Water Everywhere
When I told him the water was in the office already and about to get into the
rest of the house he was amazed.) By noon the water outside was just at the
level of the doorway. The drain in the toilet room and the shower oom were already
backing water up but their floors were lower then the main floor in the house.
We went room to room making sure there were no boxes on the floor. Throw rugs
were picked up, what furniture we could we placed on the dining room table and
on top of plastic foot lockers. Kathy started loading up two suitcases for us
to have clothes if we have to leave. The dam that I had made in my office at
the door frames broke and within minutes I was ankle in muddy water flowing
in from outside, my office was flooded. I was able to get some of the furniture
up in gallon cans but not all of it. The rain was not letting up and we received
another 5 inches of rain by 3 pm when the water stared flowing out of the office
into the bedroom, out of the toilet and shower into the kitchen and water was
finally breeching the sandbags at the front door and coming into the living
room.
Lt: House surrounded by water
Rt: Office
Water
level at office door
EVACUATION
We loaded the suitcases in the car. The water level was 6 inches up on the
container as well as being that deep in our whole yard. We still did not have
any electricity so I shut the breakers off incase the power came back on and
the water was still around the washing machine and refrigerator motors. (So
much for all the food in the refrigerator and freezer.)
Leaving
the flooding house
We are now staying at the Anchorage resort just up the road from our house
(on high ground). We tried to get into Lautoka to a cheaper hotel but the river
were across the road and no traffic was crossing (especially a car our size).
We then tried to go to Nadi but the main road was closed by MANY rivers our
of their banks. The town of Nadi had been under 6 feet of water since the rains
Thursday. I called Joshua to let him know what was going on and he said that
Bola's house ( at Sabeto where we have worship services) was surrounded by 3
feet of water.
So we are here at the resort on Sunday morning (11th Jan). It rained very heavy
after we left the house yesterday and until about 3 am this morning, another
5 inches for a total of over 27 inches in 4 days. Right now it is cloudy, muggy
but not raining. We brought some food items from the house but no bowls for
the cereal, or spoons or knives to butter the toast (we brought the toaster
of course).
The house is going to be a mess and it looks like our planned trip to New Zealand
on Tuesday for our 40th anniversary celebration the 17th will have to be delayed
for a week so we can get the house drained and cleaned before we leave. We haven't
decided what we are going to do just yet. It will depend on the damage to the
house. It is a cement house but it has wood wall-base pieces. When we left the
water was in the master bedroom and we were not able to get the dressers and
end tables up off the floor. The bed frame was also on the floor still. The
bed frame is made out of pressed board so I don't know. The dressers are plywood
and we should be able to dry them out. The container did get water in it but
ol' stupid (that's me) had left a box of paperback books on the floor and the
bottom 4 inches of books were soaked.
"This world is not my home"
The song, "This world is not my home" has taken more meaning this
weekend. As the roads are still iffy and the few church members we know are
scattered and are recovering like us we have a lot of work to do in a short
period of time. As I said this is Sunday morning and the rains have quit for
right now (the forecast is for more heavy rains through the week). I look out
the window at the skies as they lighten and hear some birds as they fly by and
realize that God is still alive and in control. We went down and ate breakfast
at the Marina before looking inside the house. The water had receded where it
was not going into the house anymore. The high water line was 10 inches above
the bottom of the back door and 4 inches on the front door. The water in the
office/laundry area had drained back out the side door. The water had pooled
to low spots in the kitchen, dining room and the back bedroom. We moved everything
out of the kitchen and pulled up the lino we had put down and mopped it out.
In the living room and the back bedroom I knocked holes in the cement wall to
allow the water to drain out. There is some water damage on the bottom of the
furniture we could not get up and the landlady's bed frames will have to be
tossed out. We have not had any more rain today but it is cloudy and muggy.
The weather office is calling for a tropical depression to form Tuesday and
hit us later that day for a couple of days with much more heavy rain with squalls.
They are saying it will be worse then this one. Goody! We are looking to moving
to another house but it will take a few days. The landlady called from Australia
and was sorry the house flooded and wondered if we were going to honor our year
contract. I told her that the house needed gutting and with the mold and mildew
which would grow we could not live there. Not to mention that we are without
power still and the water is being cut off, etc. She just couldn't get it that
even though it was not her or our fault that life happens and SHE is the landlord
and has to provide suitable property if we are to continue to rent.
The days to come should be very very exciting, cleaning up, moving.
Please pray for our and the brethren's strength in the coming days. Our email
checking will be sporadic to say the least..
In His Service!
Tobey & Kathy
PS We are going on to NZ. We can't do anything about the house or finding another house yet. The resort was costing us $135 Fj per night with no hot water and frigid AC. So we have secured the house and are leaving. There is another storm due in tomorrow PM and then more at the end of the week. If the water floods the house again (which is very likely as the ground is saturated) it should just flow thru the house since I knocked holes in the back walls. We drove over to Nadi airport. Almost all the hotels are full of travelers who have missed flights because roads are washed out on all roads leading to the international airport. We finally found lodging at the Tanoa and are scheduled to fly out to Auckland 8:45 am tomorrow morning. There are no roads which are impassable between here and the airport. It started raining heavy as we left Lautoka and took us over an hour and a half to get to the airport turnoff (usually 15 minutes). But we are here. Josh has our car key and is supposed to pick it up sometime tomorrow from the airport parking lot. He also has the gate and house keys to check the house while we are gone. Kathy was in shock the first night. This has taken a lot out of her. Yesterday while knocking the holes in the walls I had my knees on the floor and today have many many infected scrapes because of the septic water I had my knees in. We need to get away for a couple of weeks and when we get back can face what needs to be done. We have several people looking for accommodation for us. They have over 9,000 people in evacuation centers throughout the country.