21 February (II)

BLOCKED AT SAINTE MARIE
TWO SURVIVORS TELL THEIR STORY

Lawrence and Judith arrived yesterday evening at Ivato from Sainte-Marie. They are among the eight survivors of the collapse of a hotel during Hurricane Ivan in the region Sunday.
 
Judith and Lawrence, owner of the hotel Antsara, destroyed by "Ivan" in Sainte Marie, arrived in Ivato yesterday.
A moment of deep emotion at the Ivato airport which landed yesterday in the evening, the two survivors of hurricane Ivan in Sainte-Marie. It was believed they were dead but Lawrence and Judith survived. They are the managers of the hotel Antsara which collapsed in the district of Ankirihiry in northern Santa Maria.
They arrived safely in the capital. Held light and bags in hand, they seemed two tourists returning from vacation. However, internally, they still are reviewing the images of the ordeal they experienced during the last four days in Sainte-Marie.
Rabenatoandro Simon and his wife, Judith's parents came to the reception upon arrival. Indeed, this couple teaching and trader who paid the airfare for Lawrence and Judith order to return to Antananarivo. The emotion was present, when they recounted the tragedy.
"Telling what happened is easy, but you can never imagine what we lived through there," says Lawrence. He says that, like all Saints-mariens, they wanted to know all about the hurricane and were always kept informed to better protect, until the day when they no longer had any news.
It was Saturday, February 16 at midnight it all started. "The wind was very strong. We feltour bungalow move and has been out of the house before we do a tree falls over and destroy the box. We joined our restaurant called Antsara for us refuge inside, "says Judith. At the same time, they called for horn and scream to awaken all staff.
But Judith noticed that the whole terrace of the restaurant was gone with the wind. "Yet, Antsara was the largest traditional building in the city. It dates back more than 20 years, "says Lawrence. It is only five months since the couple took over the management of the hotel.

Against all odds
They were ten in total to have moved heaven and earth to find a shelter that night till dawn. "We had to run to lose breath to escape from the collapse of the restaurant. But it was also supporting the walls of the second bungalow walls to prevent them from collapsing, "says Lawrence.
Through wind and rain, they tried another attempt before the bungalow would collapse. At daybreak, Sainte-Marie felt the full brunt of the force of  Hurricane Ivan. They were eight people to stay.
The other two parties are elsewhere. "So we found a little piece of 1m2 in toilets of the restaurant to ourselves. It was then that I called my father to inform him of the situation, "recalls Judith. This is the last contact she has since been able to establish any communication has been cut off and that the district Ankirihiry plunged into chaos.
These people have remained eight hours in the rubble in feeding on leftover food from the hotel and pieces of papaya that had fallen to the ground. "Monday, Laurent started seeking help in the city, while we remained without anything to eat, I, Doris one of our employees and children 2 years, 4 years, 6 years and 12 years and a Adolescents 21 years "relates Judith.
The arrival of Laurent, in the evening, brings hope to the small group. People have helped them to vacate the premises. "We had to use a boat to
Starting because all traffic was cut off. The northern part of St. Mary was completely isolated. All the boxes were decimated falafa and trees, "says Lawrence tied the throat.
Solidarity
He could not remember her tears thinking of the people they have left behind. "How these people are they going to survive in the coming months. Working at the hotel was their whole lives. How are they going to do? "Laments he said.
With the support of St. mariens, the couple was able to leave. "The team of Air Madagascar has contributed significantly to our back because all the seats were taken in the one plane that was operational," emphasized Lawrence.
Judith and Lawrence are the only people who have been able to leave St Mary's after the disaster. They left behind six people who were with them during the tragedy. They no longer have reviewed the rest of their staff. Like them, and as the thousands of victims, they will have to start all over again because Ivan destroyed everything.

Box
150 phone calls from the father
Since the phone call from her daughter at 8:30 am Sunday, Simon Rabenatoandro has done everything to make distress calls to save her daughter. "I spent 150 calls to alert everyone, soldiers to civilian authorities. In vain, "said the father, who denounced the indifference of all those responsible. He has also taken the trouble to alert newspapers. "My wife and I had lived in fear during 70h, waiting for that information to come to our third child, Judith," he says. Yesterday, they were finally all together, that's all that matters for parents. "But the cyclonic interventions and post-cyclone should be strengthened," concluded the father.

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