One minute Blandien Sapien was cooking under her hut with her two babies. Such was the force of the tsunami that struck her village of Arop. When the water receded, Mrs Sapien clambered down and floated away on a pandanus branch, still clinging to her infant. Another person floated by and took the baby from its weakening mother.
Survival stories are common here, but the story of the youngest survivor is incredible.
Yesterday at Pou village, a two-hour walk inland from Arop, Mrs Sapien was being comforted by a Catholic nun, Sister Maria Mooney, of Brisbane. Sister Mooney has spent 10 years living and working with the people of Arop and the surrounding district. Any unauthorised use, copying or mirroring is prohibited.