According to a story from the Associated Press, videographer Sebastian Carvallo was showing surf videos to other guests at Macaroni Surf Resort when the 7.7 earthquake hit. Two minutes later he heard a distant roar.
The Chilean surfer grabbed his computer and his camera, rounded up the other guests and rushed to the highest spot they could find: the third floor of the thatch-roofed beach resort. . . From that vantage point overlooking the lagoon, Carvallo and the others had a terrifying front-row seat Monday night as three towering waves of a tsunami struck, shaking the building so violently they thought it would collapse.
They are lucky to have survived. So many others did not.
[Link: Associated Press and The Daily Telegraph]
Siloinak Surf Resort’s team for Mentawai Tsunami needs your help
Surfers send emergency supplies to the Mentawai islands. We need your help.
Hi, I am Gilles Bordessoule, a Frenchman living in the Mentawai islands since 2004. I manage Siloinak Surf Resort, near Siberut , the largest island of the archipelago.
The 25 October, a tsunami strikes the west coasts of the islands of Pagai and Sipora, severely damaging or destroying about 30 villages and two surf resorts. Rescue teams have collected 500 bodies as far as now, but the number of casualties in isolated villages is unknown, as there is no phone or radio communication. A rough sea and strong winds make access to these villages very difficult.
A ship chartered by the American surfer Matt Georges (Last Mile Operation) has left Padang the 27, loaded with food and medical supplies. We plan to sail with our boat as soon as possible and deliver to the population of isolated villages material for building shelters : 4 tons of tarpoline, nylon ropes, hammers, saws, nails for building around 200 family shelters. Transportation and delivery request 4 tons of fuel.
The cost of this operation is about 9000 USD, of which Siloinak Surf Resort will finance a part, but we hope help from you allowing to repeat this operation some days after with other kinds of supplies.
This is why we send this request for donations. You can send yours by bank transfer to :
Mandiri Bank
SWIFT code : BMRIIDJA
Address : KC Padang Lapangan Imam Bonjo, Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia
Account Name : Bordessoule Gilles
Account Number : 111-00-0445103-1
These monies will be used exclusively for the purchase and delivery of goods given to the Mentawai people. You can learn more about Siloinak Surf Resort and the sustainable development actions we have organized in the Mentawai on http://www.mentawaiadventure.com . Reports and accounts concerning this operation will be published in http://www.mentawaiadventure.com , « Sustainable Development » pages.
If you had other proposals for helping the Mentawai people, please contact me at info at mentawaiadventure.com. The reconstruction will last several months.
Gilles and Novie Bordessoule.
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