Little children help win against storm
As Cyclone Pam ripped at the roof of Manua School, the men, women and children underneath pulled desperately on the electrical rope that kept them from harm.
The team of teachers, who lived across the rugby field with their families, fled to the main school building as the raging storm approached.
In pitch darkness, they had the presence of mind to rig the ropes to the roof rafters so they could try to hold it down. It was a move that likely saved them.
‘‘When the gale force wind came in we tried very hard to keep the roof hanging on the house. It was the last thing we could do to save our families,’’ said teacher Cooper Henry.
‘‘Every time when the cyclone was heaving the roof up we had to [pull on the ropes]. I was the captain and would call out ‘‘pull’’ and everyone would hang on to the rope, even the little kids who were still awake. We stopped them from sleeping because it’s not safe.’’
Usually home during the day to 314 children, the school is now a scene of destruction.
The roof, so valiantly defended, is gone, apart from the centre.
School books, papers and toys are scattered in all directions, while the teachers and their families have nowhere to go.
School principal Melizabeth Uhi said she had no idea when, or if, the school would reopen, as most of the pupils’ families were homeless.
‘‘It’s more than I can explain, it’s too much for us . . . on Saturday we came out and everything was gone.’’
Evan Shuurman, a member of the Save the Children charity on the ground in Port Vila, said an estimated 45,000 children would not be going to school for the foreseeable future.
Many schools were either destroyed or being used as evacuation centres.
‘‘It’s a really challenging situation because homes have been destroyed, and until families can return home . . . they need somewhere to stay and schools are a common and logical place to use as safety centres.
‘‘We want to minimise the length of time kids stay out of school as much as possible, apart from the fact they’re missing out on valuable education, school is such an important place for children who have been through trauma, it provides them with routine and a sense of normality.’’
For Henry, the pain is amplified by the fact he is yet to learn the fate of his parents, grandmother and extended family who live on Epi, an outer island in remote Shefa province.
With no communication system available, he has no idea when he will receive word from them.
Until then, he plans to listen to the government and is grateful to New Zealand for donating educational materials.