Survivors need international support

[Reuters/Daniel Aguilar courtesy of www.alertnet.org]

CAFOD's Debbie Wainwright reports from Panabaj in Central Guatemala, where survivors of Hurricane Stan are struggling to piece their lives back together

Walking around what is left of the village of Panabaj, it is impossible to believe there could be any survivors. A torrent of mud dragging boulders, trees and debris in its wake swept down the mountainside without warning last Wednesday swamping the poor yet thriving community.

Tin roofs poke up out of the eight-metre deep sludge; cookers, grinding mills and children’s’ toys lie twisted and broken on the surface.

But the stench that turns the stomach not only comes from the rotting debris and oily mud. More than 1,400 people are believed to be buried beneath - up to two-thirds of the 850 families died that early Wednesday morning.

Yet miraculously there are survivors. Among them Baltazar Coo Coche and his wife Elana, both in their late 50s. Theirs is a tale of extraordinary determination to survive against the odds.

With the help of others this frail couple found a remarkable agility and strength, which allowed them to escape to safety. Sadly their three grandchildren aged three, five and seven living further up the hill did not make it. Water and mud flooded their house causing the roof to collapse on top of them.

Mr Coche gives his testimonial with dignified resignation. His wife stares off into a place only she can go. She only really comes to life when she talks about her grandchildren. “I can never forget their gestures, the way they played and laughed. I will never rub this nightmare out of my mind,” she says.

The Coche’s take some comfort in the fact that their little bodies were found and given a proper burial. For many others the mud that wiped out their lives in a flash will be their final resting place.

Mr and Mrs Coche are now taking refuge at the parish house in the town of Santiago, near to the popular tourist resort LakeAtitlan. They share a room - a former office - with 38 other people from their community.

A further 230 people share the remaining offices and dormitories and another 100 turn up at meal times to receive food.

Dealing with trauma

Parish priest Pedro Gabriel Cachal Mos of the Parish of Santiago Apostle in the diocese of Solola was one of the first on the scene when disaster struck.

“I left the house at 6am to join the rescue effort. It was chaos. It was raining heavily and everyone was screaming. There was so much anguish and confusion. Children didn’t want to leave without their parents. Parents didn’t know where their children were.

“Now people are a lot calmer. We are giving them some food and putting films on at night to entertain them and teachers from the area are coming to play with the children. But all I can say is the people are traumatised. Psychologists and doctors have come to help.”

In Guatemala the tradition is to hold a special Mass nine days after a person has passed away. Father Mos led this Mass for all those who had died in the town and its communities, such as Panajab.

More than 2,000 people attended while others listened to it on a special broadcast by CAFOD partner the Guatemalan Federation of Radio Education (FGER).

The names of all those who died and are missing were read out. Mr and Mrs Coche did not attend. They are still too distressed by what happened.

Practical help

The Catholic Church is reaching thousands of people in need across the diocese. Local churches are donating food and money to the shelters and CAFOD partner FGER are also collecting vital aid supplies.

Father Mos says: “It is important to continue to celebrate Mass but also have personal contact with people. Make sure they eat, talk, look after their health. We have to show that faith is not just abstract and theoretical but is living and taking action.

“The Church is fundamental to people’s lives here. When we appealed for help everyone came”

International support is needed

In Guatemala the situation is one of the poor helping the poor. It is questionable how long these already poverty-stricken communities can sustain this support. Urgent international help is needed.

The major problems for Mr and Mrs Coche and their fellow survivors lies in the future. There is nowhere for them to go. Their homes at Panabaj are not only destroyed but the contamination is so great it is impossible for them to rebuild there. The small plots of land they held are also gone.

Mr Coche sat quietly contemplating the next few years and says: “I have a wave of sadness. I am so worried about what lies ahead. Where will we build a new house? How will we do it? What with, we have nothing.”

Mrs Coche joins his train of thought but adds: “In my dreams we have a piece of land where we can build a house and be together with the rest of our family. Our grandchildren are also there in my dream.”

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