Mercy mission after tsunami

"I REMEMBER one man who was just sitting on the foundations of his house, just gently rocking backwards and forwards holding his family photo album. "He had lost his wife and four daughters. He blamed himself because he had left for work 15 minutes before the wave hit. There was nothing we could do for him," said Stefan Hopkins of the newly-formed rescue group SARAID (Search And Rescue Assistance In Disasters) For the group, the Asian tsunami was a devastating baptism of fire. This was their first operation and nothing had prepared them for the destruction, the anguish or the sheer scale of the tragedy. Stefan Hopkins was among a six-man team who flew out to the ravaged shores of Sri Lanka. After a nervous 10-day wait in the UK his small band of volunteers finally flew out on Thursday, January 6. Most of the team were experienced rescue workers but they were still shocked by the carnage. All around them, the devastation wrought by the tsunami was still all too evident. "From the south all the way up the west coast everything was destroyed from half a kilometre to a kilometre inland," said Mr Hopkins. "The further south we went the worse it got. We would drive for hour after hour and there was just this strip of complete destruction." Stunned by the terrible scenes around them, the team arrived at Seenigama, where one of the most worst single incidents of the tsunami had seen a heavily-laden passenger train picked up and swept aside by the waves, killing thousands. "The first wave washed over it and some people were injured and killed but the second and third waves picked it up and tossed it aside like a piece of litter on the street," said Mr Hopkins. "Ten days after it happened they were still finding bodies on the train. The stench of death in the air was overpowering. It was very hot, very humid and with this stench it was quite difficult to breathe. "It wasn't the dead bodies that upset the team, they are used to dealing with dead bodies. It was the personal effects. There were children's toys lying around the carriages, family pictures, wallets... that really made it hit home, made it seem more real." After the appalling scenes of Seenigama, the team moved on to other places along the coast, providing fresh water and clearing contaminated wells. With the tragedy still raw in people's minds they witnessed the full spectrum of human emotion, from heroic determination to abject despair. "The reactions among the local people were mixed. There were some who were pleased to see us, very strong and determined to get themselves and their community back together. "But then there were others who obviously totally traumatised. Sometimes we were just a shoulder to cry on. I think it made a big difference to people that someone from 6,000 miles away came just to spend five or ten minutes talking to them." Along with providing fresh water, the team took on other duties wherever an extra pair of hands was needed. Further down the coast in Hikkaduwa they helped locals rebuild a school that had been all but demolished by the tsunami, including building new toilet blocks and clearing the playground of rubble. There were other, smaller rescue attempts as locals tried their best to salvage what was left of their old lives. In one poignant episode the team saw a local fisherman attempting in vain to rescue his stricken boat from the sea bed. "We saw these guys snorkelling offshore," said Mr Hopkins. "They had tied ropes to their boat and pulled but they could not move it. One by one the team joined them, then other locals and holiday-makers, until there were about 60 people on this rope. "Foot by foot it came ashore. There were Germans, Americans, Sri Lankans, Australians and us Brits, all these different nations pulling together to help someone get back on their feet. For me it was quite symbolic. "The fisherman was crying tears of joy. He could repair the hole in the side and go fishing again. It may seem a small thing to us but to his life it made a huge difference." For information on SARAID or to make a donation to the team, visit their website at www.saraid.co.uk

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