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'Phi Phi is finished'
29/12/2004 23:11 - (SA)
Antoinette Slabbert, Beeld
Johannesburg - "Hi Mum, Phi Phi is finished. Tidal wave destroyed it. Was diving at the time. Lucky. Many people injured and dead. Leaving soon for Phuket. Need to speak. Will SMS you when I have signal and coul you please phone me. Been carrying people for the last 24 hours. Very sad. Love Rols."
With this SMS Roland Schornborn of Parkmore, Johannesburg, informed his mom that he is alive - more than 24 hours after she had heard the news of the disastrous tidal wave that had hit the island where her son was doing holiday work.
Schonborn, a second-year economics student at the University of Cape Town, was among the survivors of the giant tidal wave who returned to South Africa on a special flight from Phuket, Thailand, on Wednesday. He was planning to work at a diving resort there until the middle of February as a student job.
Schonborn recounts that he was about 30m under water, roughly 60km from the island Phi Phi when the disaster struck. "We just felt the tide pulling very strongly," he said.
He and his colleagues completed the dive, after which the local fishermen tried to explain to them what had happened. Due to the language barrier they did not understand what was going on, and returned for a second dive.
By 13:30, approximately three hours after the disaster, they finished their diving and returned to shore. However, they had to wait in the bay for about one-and-a-half hours before they were allowed to dock.
They were greeted by total disaster when they set foot on shore on Phi Phi at 16:00. "There were wrecks everywhere. Bodies, fridges, cooler boxes and stuff just lay around."
Schornborn immediately dug in and helped to look for injured people. He helped to carry them to makeshift first-aid tents that were erected on the island in the interim. "All the first-aid kits on the island were pooled. I think there was only one doctor on the entire island."
He worked three hours to dig up Doman van Wene, who was buried 12 hours under the rubble at that stage. "He survived!"
"When you're alone, you see the stuff again. Stuff you never really wanted to see."
- Beeld
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