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Experience
at "Ground Zero": The Tsunami Relief
Operation at Kampung Kuala Muda, Kedah
by Nor Hafizah Selamat
School of Social Sciences
Universiti Sains Malaysia
Email: hafiz@usm.my
I should admit that I have never had any disaster-relief
experience in my life before though it has always been
my desire to be able to go to "ground zero" and
help out those in need, like those I've seen on TV whenever
a disaster strikes. Sadly, the most I have ever done
was to donate; the usual stuff such as clothes and a
small amount of money. My friend once told me that I
should not just "think but also I must take action".
I believe my 'desire' was eventually materialized on
New Year's Day, 2005, a week after the fateful events
of 26th December, 2004. That was the day when the whole
world was stunned to hear the news of the earthquake
that caused a deadly tsunami in Southeast Asia. Several
areas on the West Coast of Malaysia were also badly affected
including Penang Island and Kuala Muda Kedah on the mainland.
I took the immediate 'action' to join the Tsunami Relief
Operation organized by the Research and Education for
Peace Unit at USM. A committee was set up to be responsible
for collecting donations from members of the public,
particularly from the USM community. A visit was then
planned, to the hardest hit areas such as Tanjung Bungah
and Kuala Muda Kedah, to distribute the donations and
also to give assistance to local committee members in
helping the survivors. On the morning of 1st January,
2005, we began to load our van and car with boxes full
of clothes, food and of course, money. There were about
10 volunteers involved including several Peace Unit staff
and also the Director of the Peace Unit, Assoc. Prof.
Dr Kamarulzaman. Since we were not quite sure where we
should distribute the donation, we stopped at the temporary
relief center at the Sekolah Menengah Kuala Muda, Kedah.
However, as they had already received a lot of donations,
we were asked to go to the other temporary relief center
at a nearby school. At that center, we began to assist
the local committee in sorting out hundreds of plastic
bags full of clothes that had been donated by the public.
While doing this task, several survivors that I met began
to recount their 'seconds from disaster ordeal's. One
woman told me how she was told to run and managed to
grab a panicking child and run to higher ground, not
knowing the fate of her own children. Others described
that they were actually at a wedding feast when they
heard a big roar, a sound like a group of 'Harley
Davidson' riders coming towards them followed by
a crackling sounds. By then it was too late for them
to do anything but leave their food and run for their
lives. It was a touching moment when one woman at the
center took me to meet a tsunami survivor who had just
given birth to a beautiful baby daughter, three days
after the tsunami struck. Although, there were not enough
facilities to keep them warm, the mother and her new-born
baby were seen sleeping soundly on the school desks that
had been arranged into a makeshift bed. After spending
an hour at the center, we then drove to the disaster
area to see if there was anything that we could do to
help. Although villagers were not yet allowed to return
to their village, a small numbers of villagers were allowed
to examine the condition of their houses and to search
if there was anything valuable left. Walking along what
used to be a busy road in the village, I was stunned
by the striking images of the enormous destruction left
by the giant waves. Almost all houses that were built
along the coastal areas were swept away, leaving only
the stilts. The foundations were still there but the
rest were in ruins. Some of the walls and zinc roofs
had been dragged along by the waves and stuck on other
houses. There was a house where the large trunk of an
uprooted tree was stuck in its wall. The waves had brought
along all the mud and other 'substances' and flooded
the houses. After the water level receded, a thick layer
of mud had covered the lower ground floor of their houses
destroying many important documents, furniture and electrical
goods. The fishing boats could be seen damaged and lying
helpless, probably beyond repair. Having conducted research
among fishing communities in Penang before, the sight
gave me a painful feeling about how the fishing communities
who always live with uncertainty, get more and more victimized
in such calamities. While examining the destruction,
we saw a man in his 60's, standing in front of his damaged
house, perhaps calculating the unimaginable loss that
he could not bear. We approached him and offered our
help to clean his house. He told me that he was still
fortunate that his house was still intact although he
lost everything in the house including his coffee shop
business, next door to his house. He escaped death by
grasping tightly onto the barbed wire fence of his coffee
shop while being engulfed by the muddy sea water.
The cleaning process began by removing all the broken
furniture and damaged equipments from the house. The
hardest part was to remove the ankle deep mud that had
began to dry up in the house. In the midst of doing this
cleaning, I saw the old man that we helped, squatting
in front of a pile of damaged furniture and items that
we had removed from inside his house. He seemed to be
looking for something. Apparently, he was searching for
the most valuable items that he had; his family photo
with the Prime Minister. He told me that the Prime Minister
was his distant relative and he was hoping that he could
save the only memory he had with the PM. Sadly, the photo
was never found. He may not be able to retrieve his valuable
photos but he seemed to be very grateful that we were
there not only to help clean the house but also to give
him comfort and moral support.
Being a participant in this operation, it was just so
amazing to see how this Peace Unit group and other volunteer
groups from different organizations pooled their strength
and co-ordinate with each other, full of enthusiasm.
Everybody seemed to know their own responsibilities and
tried to give where ever they could. While doing the
cleaning, a group of volunteers from another organization
came to us and distributed mineral water. Everyone was
somehow united at heart, giving their all to help and
give their every bit to ease the pain of the tsunami's
survivors. For me, this experience at the "ground
zero" taught me a valuable lesson, that in times
of conflict and disaster, what the victims mostly needed
was moral and emotional support. Therefore, I thank Peace
Unit for taking an initiative to organize this Tsunami
Relief Operation and at the same time for allowing me
to fulfill my 'desire'. It was indeed a meaningful experience.
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