Tsunami victims tell of their fight for survival
Tsunami victims tell of their fight for survival
A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Meulaboh
Young Ichsan Yusdarli was preparing his fishing net on a beach in Kuala district, Nagan Raya regency, some 20 kilometers from Meulaboh, on that fateful Sunday morning.
As the 14-year-old was tidying up his net, he felt the earth suddenly shake as the area was rocked by powerful earthquake. The junior high school student fell to the ground. He saw the sea recede for a distance of one or two kilometers, and he saw fish struggling to survive on the now exposed seabed.
Confused, Ichsan quickly grabbed some fish. However, far on the horizon, he saw something that he had never seen before.
"I saw three tall, black men coming out of a palace and they were approaching fast. I was scared. I ran as fast as I could to the mainland and headed to the nearest mosque for safety," recalled Ichsan, an eyewitness and survivor of the deadly tsunami.
A similar experience was shared by a military officer First. Lt. Dwimawan, who was being treated at the Teuku Umar military resort hospital at the time of disaster.
The army officer, who was suffering from malaria and typhus and had been in the hospital for the previous 12 days, was told by his doctor to sunbathe to aid his recovery on Meulaboh's beach, which is situated next to the military hospital.
On that Sunday morning, while sunbathing, Dwimawan saw couples and families spending a perfect holiday on the beach.
Suddenly, the earth shook. The earthquake was felt for about nine minutes. The sea receded for a distance of about two kilometers, prompting locals to pick up fish on the exposed seabed. Others even took pictures of the unique scene that they had never encountered before.
Soon, Dwimawan saw a large wave forming on the horizon and people started moving onshore. The first wave hit an embankment near the military hospital, and alerted him that bigger waves might follow.
He ran into the hospital to grab his belongings but it was too late. The second wave, much bigger, swept in and water quickly flooded the hospital. He swam away and managed to climb onto the roof of a nearby house. He then waited for the next wave.
One thing was becoming clear to him: the water was getting higher with every wave. At some point, when he was moving to another house on higher ground, he managed to grab hold of a woman and her daughter, guiding them to a two-story house that was also occupied by dozens of other people.
"The only thing in my mind was to get as far away as possible from the shore," he recalled.
He said he had to be very careful when swimming or running to higher ground since every new wave brought with it house debris, motorcycles, boats and even a large palm oil tank.
He finally reached the West Aceh council building where the water was about chest high.
After the water had subsided, he walked to the West Aceh district military command, some three kilometers from the shore, where a number of other people had also taken shelter.
"I reached the district military office at about 2 p.m. and there I saw many people who were beginning to search for their families," said Dwimawan.
Sgt. Maj. Karyono, who was patrolling a beach area near Tjut Nyak Dhien Airport in the Kuala district, some 20 kilometers from Meulaboh, said the tsunami was horrible.
"The wave was as high as a coconut tree," he said.
He said that after learning that a tsunami had hit the area, he quickly ran further away from the shore and picked up a little boy playing in the area. A wave came suddenly and he had to carry the boy in one hand while swimming.
"The boy was heavy, moreover I was wearing a military uniform. I was almost dead. I was traumatized. I'd rather engage in gunfights than be hit by a tsunami," he said.