From: A2T@ECLX.PSU.EDU (Aris Tanone)
Subject: Forwarded message: Flores, a firsthand report.
Organization: Penn State Engineering Computer Lab
Distribution: usa,world
Date: Fri, 01 Jan 93 20:25:14 GMT
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.24


	The following is the report of the head of SSpS congregation, 
Sister Annemarie Reich SSpS to her congregation, after visiting Flores from 
Dec. 17-23. 

	It was forwarded by Fr. Hubert Hasulie to paroki-net, and I just 
post it here to share with you. The introduction by Fr. Hasulie is written
in Indonesian, but the report is in English.

Aris Tanone
A2T@ECL.PSU.EDU


================================= forwarded message =========================

>Date: 31 Dec 1992 20:27:03 -0500
>From: 99thomah@cuavax.dnet.cua.edu
>Subject: Flores: Laporan perjalanan.
>Sender: paroki-request@uiuc.edu
>To: paroki@uiuc.edu (Paroki On-line)
>Reply-to: paroki@uiuc.edu
>Message-id: <9301010127.AA08487@netcon.cua.edu>



	Setelah berita bencana alam Flores tiba di Roma, pimpinan SSpS
	(salah satu konggregasi yang bekerja di Flores) memutuskan untuk
	berangkat ke sana guna menyaksikan sendiri serta meneguhkan anggota
	dan umat di sana.  Sr.Annemarie Reich, SSpS (pimpinan generalat di 
	Roma) berada di Flores dari tanggal 17-23 desember.  Tanggal 24 
	desember ia membuat laporan perjalanan yang ditujukan kepada para
	anggota biaranya.  Tetapi tidak salah juga kalau diketahui oleh 
	anggota paroki-net.
	NB.  posting ini agak panjang!!


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	I was able to visit some of the communities in East Flores from
	December 17th to 23rd and I consider it a special grace to have
	been granted this opportunity to directly share with the sisters
	and the people their immense suffering and affliction.

	Before I talk about the events in detail, I would like to tell
	you that none of our sisters died nor has anyone of them been
	seriously injured.  At the Divine Word Seminary in Ledalero one
	Frater was killed when a wall collapsed; another one died a week
	later from the results of his injuries.  There are others who
	suffered broken arms and legs.

	The epicenter of the quake, which was not of volcanic but of
	tectonic origin, was the Island of Palue north-west of Maumere.
	It affected many islands as wwell as the eastern part of Flores.
	Because of its intensity the earthquake caused numerous deaths
	and enormous damage property. Many people were buried alive
	under the rubble of their collapsed houses.  Probably even more
	died in the tidal wave that followed the earthquake.  In parts
	the waves were as high as 30 meters and totally covered some of 
	the smaller populated islands as well as sections of the northern
	coast of Flores.  Although many more people than was initially
	thought, were able to reach safety, the victims of the disaster
	are numerous.  For example, it has been said that 800 of the
	1200 inhabitants of the Island of Babi drowned in the floods.
	We met many of the survivors from the island in the hospital of
	Maumere and in tents on the road from Maumere to Hokeng.

	A third cause of death were the landslides in the wake of the
	earthquake.  Many poor people died in this way because they had
	constructed their houses on the slopes of the hills.  Most of the
	villages and towns look like scenes of total devastation after a
	bomb attack in a war.  There are towns where not a single brick
	house remained intact.  The majority were totally destroyed or
	severely damaged.

	When I arrived in Maumere in the evening of December 17th, I
	saw with my own eyes the extent of the disaster as the sisters
	walked with me through the town.  Maumere had no electricity,
	and because of many broken pipes, the water supply was 
	interrupted until the 18th.  The situation improved slightly
	only after that. 

	We visited the hospital and saw that the buildings were 
	destroyed.  Most of the patients who haad been inside the 
	hospital during the earthquake have since left.  Their places
	were taken by the many injured who are sheltered under tents and
	are also treated in the open air.  Here we also met the two SVD
	Fraters who had surgery on the same day.  All two story buildings
	in the main shopping center are no longer standing.  The people
	who have lost their homes have been taken shelter under tents in
	the city square.  They have almost no sanitary facilities, or 
	any means of livelihood.

	The focus of the world's attention has so far been Maumere, since
	the town was mentioned in the news and soon afterwards outside
	help arrived.  However, the more remote villages remained without
	help for a long time, since no reporter reached there to gather
	information.  Only on the 18th did a news reporter come with us to
	Hokeng where many of the surrounding villages had been totally
	destroyed.

	We have eight communities in the area most affected by the earth-
	quake -- Mataloko in central Flores has not suffered any signifi-
	cant loss and our buildings in Larantuka in the far East of the 
	island remained more or less intact.  I was not able to visit
	these two communities.  Until the day I left, we did not succeed
	in directly contacting our sisters in the small community of
	Belogili, where the clinic building collapsed.

	Our convent church in Maumere was spared.  The house of the 
	sisters shows big cracks in the walls, but these can probably
	be repaired.  The middle school, the kindergarten for about 300
	children, and the boarading facilities for eighty girls are
	completely destroyed.  For fear of further after-shocks, which
	were quite frequent in the days immediately following the earth-
	quake, the sisters were eating and sleeping in the open air.

	On December 18th we drove to our provincial house in Hokeng.
	The road had just been opened again for traffic after the army
	had removed a lot of the rubble and repaired the bridges.  On the
	way to Hokeng we came across the survivors of the Island of Babi.
	They had already received tents, mattresses and rice, but blank-
	ets were still missing.  A few kilometers further, the inhabitants
	of some of the fishing villages of the North Coast of Flores, who
	had been rescued, had taken refuge and had found a temporary
	shelter.  They had lost everything and up to then had not received
	any help.  To these, the poorest of the poor, our sisters had 
	brought food, blankets and many other things sent from Surabaya
	by our sisters.

	In Hokeng the buildings that housed our postulants, novices and
	junior sisters are no longer habitable.  The sisters sleep in 
	tents in the yard.  I was glad to stay with them until the 
	following day.  In Hokeng the Minor Seminaary of the SVD is 
	almost completely destroyed and the retreat house has been
	damaged.

	On the way back to Maumere we visited our sisters in Kewapante.
	The hospital buildings as well as the convent have not been 
 	extensively damaged However, the parish church right next to our
	house is destroyed.  Sister Mariflora, the superior of Kewapante,
	has lost her elder sister in the earthquake.  Three houses of her
	relatives are completely ruined.  Quite a number of the relatives
	of the other sisters have lost their homes, but there was no news
	about the death of any other relatives.

	The Major Seminary in Ledalero looks like a place of total
	devastation.  Only the building that houses the museum, the
	kitchen and our convent still stand.  All other buildings have
	collapsed and no one knows where or how to accomodate the more
	than 300 seminarians.  Father General Barlage and the General 
	Councilor Fr. Peraso were in Flores at the same time to see what
	could be done.

	On Sunday December 20th I traveled to Lela which does not look
	much better than Ledalero.  Not much is left of the hospital
	almost all buildings are destroyed including the school building
	and the technical equipment can no longer be used.  Sister
	Conchita, the doctor, is treating her patients under a tent in
	the open air.

	There is a second community opposite the hospital -- and these
	buildings also are no longer habitable.  The exception is the
	oldest wooden house, which we had taken over from the Jesuits.  As
	much as is possible the sisters remain in the open, and there
	they also cook.

	Together with Father General I tried to reach Ende on Monday.
	Since the road was still impassible we took a small boat in 
	Mauloo -- just big enough for the five of us -- and reached the
	harbor of Ende after four hours.  Ende too has suffered a lot of
	damage, but our convent and the maternity building have remained
	almost intact.  The church of the sisters has been considerably
	damaged.  The SVD has lost almost all the buildings of the 
	Brothers' community as well as the school buildings.

	The CIJ sisters, a local congregation, which our Sister Xaver
	accompanied in the early stages of their foundation, lost 15
	convents.  In Ende their school with all that belongs to it and
	the house of the sisters lie in ruins.  One of the sisters was
	killed under collapsed walls, one postulant and two sisters were
	seriously injured.

	I could continue describing the consequences of the earthqauke,
	but there would be no end to it.  A total of 251 primary schools
	are said to be destroyed and in January classes should resume in
	the open air.  This would not be too bad in a tropical climate,
	if it would not have coincided with the rainy season. 

	Looking at all the collapsed buildings, it seems unbeleivable
	that there was not more loss of life.  What might explain this is
	the fact that there were two tremors.  After the first strong
	quake, many people were able to seek refuge in the open justt
	before the second quake caused the buildinggs to collapse.  The
	earthquake occured at 13:30.  At 13:00 (1.00 p.m) school closed
	and there were no longer any children in the buildings.  Most of
	the offices in the towns had closed for the lunch break.  In
	addition, it was Saturday and at noon the shopping center of
	Maumere closed.  Anyone who has ever witnessed the crowds in the 
	shopping center of Maumere, can imagine what a catastrophe it would 
	have been, had the the earthquake happened at the time of business.
	We have to thank the Lord that he has so obviously placed his
	protecting hand over Flores.

	Most of the people are still in shock and paralyzed to such a
	degree that they cannot yet gather their strength and become
	active again.  They seem numb and completely given over their 
	fate.  They need help -- human assistance, comfort and the
	encouragement of others.

	Material help reached the island from many countries almost
	immediately after the disaster.  Many countries gave generously.
	However, since the world initially knew only about Maumere,
	most of the aid went to this town.

	There were difficulties in the distribution process.  As a result
	the goods accumulated in one place while the victims were left
	without essential items.

	Nevertheless, I had the impression that much was done to help and
	that especially the army offered effective assistance.  Since
	public servants and the military have great confidence in religious
	our sisters were able to participate in the various operations.

	Dear Sisters, I thank you for your concern and your prayer for
	our fellow sisters in Floresd and for the whole suffering 
	population  on the island.

	This year Christmas in Flores will look like the first Christmas
	-- God will come, that is certain -- God will come to a people
	in great poverty and distress, to people who no longer have 
	home.  May God grant them special Love.  

					Sr. Annemarie Reisch, SSpS

	December 24, 1992
	
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hubert

======================================End of forwarded message ==============
A2T@ECL.PSU.EDU

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