|
|
|
  |
| Sunday, 2 January 2005 |
 |
|
 |
Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Happy to be safe It was a time for tourists from France, Germany, the UK, Italy and Sweden to visit Sri Lanka and many of them had left their winter homes to enjoy the warm sunny beaches and calm seas.
They cannot comprehend what has overtaken them. They visibly saw the waves they thought would give them relaxation rise and devastate and destroy those around them. P. Muthiah, Indira P. Dahanayake and Surekha Galagoda met displaced tourists housed at the BMICH. Here they give vivid descriptions of the tragedy. What affected tourists say... A German couple, Craigner Andreyer and his wife, said that they were having their breakfast at Hotel Riverina in Beruwela. They saw the waves closing in, the ground floor and were taken to the upper floors. People were crying and there was a commotion. They said that they had lost two of their companions. They had been at the hotel for two days and said nature had robbed them of their desire to visit other places in the South. The couple was very happy with the care of the hotel staff and the Tourist Board that evacuated them to Colombo. S. Glassen, from France, had miraculously survived the devastation. "I was staying at Hotel Riverina on that fateful day. While we were at our breakfast the first wave hit the doors and windows on the ground floor. The hotel staff managed to take us to the upper floors for safety.
The wave was not very forceful, but it destroyed doors and windows, and the ground floor was flooded. The second one that came forty minutes later was devastating. It completely destroyed the ground floor. Waves broke away the doors and took all the furniture away. Everyone had gone to the upper floors, but I came down to pick my things. When I went to the room, the door suddenly broke and my room was filled with water. The hotel staff too accompanied me. We had no way to escape and ran into the bathroom. Suddenly, that door too came away and the water rose over my head. I held my breath for some time. The hotel staff broke the ceiling and water flowed even through it. When the water reached my neck I was still floating, but I was able to breathe. We did not know what was going to happen and were thrown through to the corridor to the garden and, the water subsidised within a few minutes. I found the hotel staff on a nearby tree. I managed to get to the second floor later. My family members thought I would have perished. We have lost everything including travel documents, air tickets and a small safe I carried with a lot of money. All our things were floating in the sea. But we are lucky that we have escaped the wrath of the sea. The Hotel Staff tried their best to accommodate us elsewhere. At that time we were on the road. The French Embassy and the Sri Lankan officials provided us with necessary travel documents. We will be leaving Sri Lanka once the charter is ready. Angela Wallock and her husband, two British nationals who were brought from the Brown's Beach hotel, Negombo are still suffering from shock, had a hair raising tale to tell and this will evoke the sympathy of any listener. Angela controlling her emotions, was an eye witness to the devastation that injured her while her husband recalled a scene from the film 'Titanic' that haunted his memory. "From time to time I was looking at the sea through our bedroom when I spotted a small foamy wave coming towards the shore where some Isolated bungalow was located facing the sea at the hotel premises. The time was about 1 pm (approximately) when both me and my husband were relaxing in our bed room, interrupted Angela, then I heard people screaming I ran towards the large bay window facing the sea in our bed room and saw a very small wave of about one foot in height coming towards the hotel followed by two large waves that came lengthwise and joined forming a massive wave. This wave crept right into the bungalows through the front doors and windows. There was a particular bungalow (similar to a cabana) occupied by a newly married couple. I saw the gigantic wave as it swept into the cabana bringing out every item inside the bungalow including the occupants and then form into a whirlpool. The panic stricken couple struggled to get out, their efforts were in vain. The monstrous wave carried the couple and everything back to the sea. This wave was followed by another nearly thirty feet in height and this hit our bed room located on the second floor. We did not have much time to think. We tried to open the door but the force of the water locked the door. Finally it opened when both of us forced it open. The water came right up to my neck. I almost swallowed the water. The bed room filled with water' but did not carry away our clothes hung inside the cupboard. Once the water receded we were taken to the car park by the authorities of the hotel. The car park was at a higher elevation in the premises. We could not take most of our belongings as we had to rush out before we were swept away in case another wave followed. Young Rhona and William Burt - a Danish couple holidaying at the Browns Beach Hotel also had something more to say about the monstrous tidal wave. According to this young engineer and his secretary wife, they escaped by a miracle. "Thanks to my husband I am alive today" Rohna sighs - her eyes filled with tears as she describes the tragedy. "As we were strolling down the beach a small wave with foam came towards my feet, I did not take much notice of it but, the security guard smelt something unusual, and asked us to move back: Meanwhile I dropped my camera and as I bent to pick it up two large waves lifted both of us at lightening speed I clung on to a concrete pilar that was placed in the compound as a decorative post while my husband clung on to me. The wave rocked us to and fro banging us on the glass panes in the hotel, Rhona showed a few bruises on her feet as a result of the banging. "I saw a man floating on a wave nearly eight feet in height. A man from the upper floor put down a towel for me to climb up but I did not want to pursue leaving behind my husband", she said tears streaming down her rosy cheeks "if we die it should happen together" she emphasised. "My husband kept calm while I was panic stricken. My ribs still aches and I have no appetite" she said with disgust. "We have to wear borrowed clothes as ours were washed away. 'But our tickets are still safe with me in my handbag along with our passports. Sleep does not come to me easily. While we were brought by a luxury bus here to the BMICH, I saw imaginary waves surrounding me. I am sure it will take sometime for me to get over this trauma," she added. Amy and Katie Griffiths - UK who are on their third visit with their mother said "we will be back for next Christmas. It was a very scary experience but the staff at Aitken Spence looked after us very well. Barry and Barbara also from UK on their seventh visit were at the Neptune when it happened. " We arrived on December 20. I was sleeping. My husband went out and came back and said that something unusual is happening. It was a horrendous experience. All my stuff is gone. The staff at Neptune had to give us everything. They looked after us as their own. It was very touching because with their own people dead they still did not leave us but ensured that we were safe and comfortable. We hope that everything will return to normal as soon as possible for the lovely people and the beautiful country. We will come back" they echoed, in unison. Though these foreigners had this nasty experience all of them were full of praise for the hospitality extended to them. Although they did not have a good look at the country, they still consider Sri Lanka as their dream Isle. Dr. Mahesha Ganegoda, a Russian educated physician, said she had been voluntarily treating the tourists since Monday. The first badge of tourists arrived on Monday evening and there were seven with bruises and injuries. She had brought her own medicine to treat patients. Ganegoda said that most of them had minor injuries, bruises on legs and hands due to being trampled, in the process of rushing out to save their lives. She said one person had 25 injuries and two big cuts on his body. 'By Tuesday evening I and other medical personnel treated more than two hundred patients,' Dr. Ganegoda said. What some hoteliers say... Amal Nanayakkara Manager Aitken Spence Hotel management said: To rebuild the Aitken Spence group owned Neptune and Triton we will need about Rs, two billion. The Golden Sun Resort at Kalutara which is very close to the sea is fairly ok though the pool is damaged. There is water in the bedrooms, and this will have to be cleared. The 140 room Neptune Hotel at Beruwala was the worst hit. All 40 cabanas have collapsed, while 75 rooms and the kitchen are totally damaged. The 160 room Triton Ahungalla is also damaged. At the time of the tidal wave we had 230 guests and 150 staffers at Neptune. Two guests were slightly injured. At Triton we had about 350 guests some guests were injured but nothing major happened." he said. Upendra Sirisena Reservations Manager of Confifi Group said " All the four hotels owned by the Confifi group along the coastal area Riverina, Confifi Beach, Club Palm Garden and Eden are affected and there were about 1000 guests. The worst hit is the Confifi Beach,but it is too early to give a monetary value to the damages. At present the guests are at BMICH and on the top floor of Hotel Eden. We are doing our best to send them back home safely," Sirisena said. Kenneth Kumaraperuma, Manager, Mt. Lavinia Hotel Catering at the BMICH said that more than 500 tourists had been brought by them and Aitken Spence hadbrought nearly 400. Italian tourists who were brought to Colombo on Monday had left the Island. Upali De Silva, Director, Corporate Services, Ceylon Tourist Board, said that they had brought 600 tourists on Tuesday and many more were to come. Some were provided lodgings at the Intercontinental Hotel and left the country in batches. Tourists from different countries, including Italy, Germany, France had been evacuated. They were enjoying their holidays in hotels in and around Bentota, Beruwela, Unawatuna, Mirissa, Tangalle and other areas at the time of disaster. De Silva said that they were satisfied with the facilities including lodging, food and medical care provided at the BMICH. He added that the Tourist Board, in a statement said, about 65 tourists perished. |
|
| News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
