Cyclone Pat is a Very Nasty Lady

7am, 2.5 hours after the eye has passed at Rapae Bay, Amuri Village

The bar at Pacific Resort Aitutaki (under the sand is stairs and paving!)

(L) Amuri Village destruction; (R) Neibaa store in Vaepae Village

(L) Presbyterian Church in Vaepae; (R) Teka'aroa SDA School

Teka'aroa SDA School

A quick installment from poor old Aitutaki. First and foremost we are safe and sound, the house and resort are structurally sound and most importantly no lives were lost. Once you have looked at the total devastation around our beautiful island you can appreciate that last statement with wonder and awe. We were lucky enough to be in one of the safest positions on the island. We were exposed to all of the Southerlies before the eye, but protected from the early Easterlies and the North winds after the eye passed. Additionally we are connected to the resort generator so didn’t lose the light or power and until 2am when the internet went out, we were able to keep and eye on updates and the wind strength at the airport. Incidentally, when we lost our connection at 2am, the top gust was 70 knot, and that was 2 hours before the eye moved over the island (between 4.00am and 4.45am).

Michael was at the resort between 1am and 4am as trees fell all around - he ended the day on Wednesday night having works 38 hours straight. The kids and I were in our bed, with the lights on and audio books playing – loudly. The sound of the wind, even with everything shut up, was incredibly loud. It was like standing beside a railway while a freight train screams past, except that it didn’t stop for 9 hours. The amount of adrenaline going through my body for such a prolonged period made me feel sick. Gusts got stronger and stronger, and literally slammed against the side of the house. Palm tree leaves filled the stairway and I literally watched out the window as a hot water heater flew off the neighboring roof. Daylight revealed three trees that had fallen away from the house, mattresses floating in the tide and a view out of the property towards the village that didn’t exist before. The little pool managed to catch 2 boogie boards in it – the third could be anywhere.

It was bad enough seeing the mess at the resort, where nearly all the big trees have fallen or had branches ripped off, blocking all paths and entry to several rooms. Venturing around the island is heart breaking. The kid’s school, Teka'aroa SDA, doesn’t exist anymore. ‘My’ preschool classroom consists of a blackboard on the end wall, upon which someone has written ‘God Is Great’. The library, and 3 classes, plus the admin office with all computers etc have been flattened. Bailey’s class block of 3 rooms is standing but the roof is in the banana plantation across the road. The college has lost several class rooms and the roof to many other classes. I had to cry. The houses constructed out of coral concrete, which is a lot of the old family homes, have lost walls and roofs. Fibro houses have had mixed fortunes, mostly bad. Concrete houses have done well, and western style houses the best. Power lines and phone lines lie all over the roads. There are some places with underground power supplies which have been reconnected, but issues with drinking water and food safety affect almost everyone and majority of the island is in darkness.

While people were emerging with smiles yesterday morning, today the enormity of the task ahead has robbed the smiles from many faces. Where do we start seems to be a common thought, and what outsiders may not realize is that it isn’t simply a task of rebuilding – there are no building supplies on the island and no skilled staff. There is no money to replace homes that have been built by and lived in for generations. Trees are down everywhere – I heard an estimate of 18mths before any new coconuts can be harvested, which is a major issue for feeding people and stock (many pigs survive on coconut flesh). Many family plantations have huge damage, fruit trees have been stripped or felled.

Regular flights have returned today. The resort is accepting guests. The resort cleanup should be mostly done within a week or two, by which time we will have earned our holiday. I can only hope the Aitutaki spirit will remain undaunted, and the easy option of just leaving will not be too high in people’s minds. The lagoon looks lovely today.

Kia Manuia

Map of Aitutaki

Yes, yes, you have seen the tourist maps and the hotel maps, but where do you actually live in this place? Where do things happen? Well here is the definitive (until I amend it) map (thanks Google Earth) of The Shah's Aitutaki!
In comparison, Kawau Island in the Hauraki Gulf is 7km by 5km, and Motutapu Island is 7km x 3km. There is a tar sealed road that runs around the island and several unsealed roads that cut across the island. We have only found one that we would honour with the title Wyllie Rd. The roads here are repaired with crushed coral, which is excavated from the lagoon just off the beach. This is actually a great thing for the locals as they get a nice deep swimming hole instead of the shallow 27 degree lagoon at our place. Fortunately there is such a trench a few doors up from our house.

So home for now, at Retire's house (C), is 2km from the Pacific Resort (A), which is 2km from Tekaaroa School (D). In 4 months we will move to the Rapae Village (B) which is the Pacific Resort staff village.

The best shopping is over the island at Neibaa Store (N) (as in 'your friendly neibaa store' - sound it out....) which is run by a Kiribati family. The have the biggest range and the prices are pretty good. Just like a 4 Square really but smaller, darker and more crowded. The Heinekin shop (L) has lots of imported dairy products - essential for growing Shahs - including 1kg yoghurt for $14 (gulp) and big blocks of chocolate for $9 (eek). It is also the icecream shop to stop at after school. There are a lot of variety type stores around including Mango Traders (also at B) which is Auntie Moira's store and who have just finished making a dress for Sienna (more on that later).

Teina and Annie Bishop run Bishops Cruises and their other businesses from their house (E). We visit them several times a week after school to swim in their pool. The kids are becoming experts at 'breaking in' to their banana safe! Stephen and Poppy's Docherty house (F) is near the highest point on the island Maunga Pu. Their deck and (unheated) spa pool have one of the best views on the island. They are currently our lending library (though I need to slow down a bit or will run out of reading material!).

Our two favourite places to visit are the Marine Resource Centre (G), which we can walk to in 45min along the beach, where they breed giant clams and have a rescued turtle. There was also a big stone fish there the other day which was downright scary looking. The sailing club (I) consists of a good beach with a swimming channel and a few shipping containers. The sand bar just off the beach is shallow enough for the kids to stand up, so the sailors have a rest out there when they want to. The church we go to (once a month) is the CICC (Cook Islands Christian Church) in Arutanga. There is a specific section for each village (ours is Amuri) and there are kids everywhere.

So that is our world, complete with roving chickens and pigs - not that much different from Wyllie Rd......

xxJen