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Lest we forget: 26 years after the Sissano Tsunami

Sr. Maria Tongop PBVM

Aitape: A Eucharistic celebration was held on July 17, 2024 to commemorate the 26th anniversary of the Sissano Tsunami in Aitape.

(Eucharistic Mass to commemorate 26 years since the Sissano Tsunami...Picture supplied)


Presiding as the main celebrant was Fr George Ayikade CSSp and joining him in as concelebrants were Fr Nathanael CSSp and Fr Joseph Dihn CSSp.

 

In attendance were emotional faithful from the coastal areas of Arop, Sissano, Barapu and Malol who gathered to remember their loved ones who were lost, give thanks to God for their lives and also thank him for those that assisted with relief supplies in their time of need, the health workers who attended to the injured survivors and the people of goodwill for their prayers that time.

 

Following the service, those in attendance mingled and reminisced over their bittersweet moments when disaster struck.

 

According to sharing by Mr Gerard Kawase, a survivor who lost his son, the tsunami took everyone by surprise.

 

“It was just like a normal afternoon. My wife and I were out fishing to test our brand-new fishing nets. It wasn’t long until my wife noticed that something was wrong when there was a sudden change in the current. When we looked to the shores, we saw the trees trembling violently”.

 

Mr Kawase said they paddled quickly to the shore as they heard people shouting, ‘one more’ and kept repeating it. Little did they know that disaster would strike.


“There was a rumbling sound coming from the sea and when I turned around, I saw a very huge wave rolling towards us. My wife and I grabbed our two children before we were pulled underwater and dragged out into the lagoon. The turbulence separated me from my son and my wife also let go of our daughter. When I finally made it to the surface, it was getting dark, but I could see my wife, my mother-in-law and my brother-in-law. I thought of my children and quickly swam to the shore”.

 

He recalled that there was chaos everywhere. The sight of injured survivors was haunting as he thought of his lost children.

 

“It was a relieving moment when we found our daughter alive. However, we lost our dear son for good. We searched for him everywhere. Minutes turned into hours and hours into days. Eventually the days turned into months and then years, and we never saw him again”, he said as he cried bitterly.

 

The tragic Sissano Tsunami is a story of the survivors that has been passed down from their generation to the current generation and the tradition of having a memorial day was set to tell their stories and those that were lost so they are remembered to prayer.

 

Prior to the memorial mass, a day is set for recollection where the faithful have an evening prayer, meditation and reflection for the souls of their loved ones that were lost.


(The faithful who attended the mass...Picture supplied)

  

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