Samoan Tsunami Survivor
Justin Cote
- October 06 2009
- 26 comments
Damage from the recent Samoan Tsunami.
Tsunami Survivor
Told by Neil Lumsden to Zachary Keenan. Check the photo gallery below this article…
At first light I was down at the shore loading up the boat same as any other day, getting ready for another sunrise session out on the shelf. I had my son Manoa and my good friend Stu Wallace’s son Kealoha, Manoa’s best buddy, with me cruising out on the boat. They were going to keep each other entertained playing with Lego’s in the boat while I went to get a few early morning barrels to start my day. I anchored my boat on the mooring I had setup in the channel, around the corner of the pass inside from the shelf. I left the groms to play and went to catch a few waves.
Tsunami survivors: Neil and Manoa Lumsden.
One of the surf camp boats was already out there with a few guys on it getting some good waves. Being one of the closest waves to the shore, about a half hour into my session another surfer, Darren, paddled out to join me, and we traded a few waves before things got hectic. We had no warning, being out in the water outside of the reef pass we didn’t feel the earthquake happen, and everyone was caught completely off guard.
I looked behind me to see the reef going dry all of the way to the shore until the shelf was sticking up about 15 feet out of the water.
All of a sudden, while sitting at the usual takeoff spot on the reef, I looked behind me to see the reef going dry all of the way to the shore until the shelf was sticking up about 15 feet out of the water. The normal channel turned into a puddle and my boat was nearly dry-docked sitting in a tiny pool of water. I knew instantly what the situation was, that this was extremely serious, and I began paddling as fast as I possibly could to get to the boat and the groms.
After the ocean receded, the surge began to fill back in within about a minute. The water hit my boat and began pushing it toward shore, but the mooring was still hooked and the force of the surge pulled the line taught until it began pushing the nose of the boat down into and under the water. There was only so much length on the line, and as the water level rose above normal sea level and continued pushing the boat toward shore, the nose of the boat began submerging. As this began happening the groms were thinking the boat was going to sink and were ready to jump out and swim, so I yelled at them both to stay in the boat. The force of the water was so powerful that even though I had gotten to the boat, the current was so strong sweeping past us and pulling on my legs that I couldn’t pull myself out of the water in order to climb into the boat. Somehow, my tomb-stoning surfboard flipped over so it was lying on top of the surface, which released the tension pulling on my leg and I told my son to grab me and help pull me into the boat. Darren, the surfer that had paddled out from the shore, paddled over to the boat also and had the same trouble climbing out of the force of the surge, with the current pulling on his board trying to drag him in. I told him to take off his leash in order to get free from the pull of the water and as soon as he did he was able to get up into the boat, but his surfboard was gone in an instant. The other surfers in the lineup went over toward their surf camp boat, which had come loose from its anchorage, and got it started so they could motor out to sea.
The tsunami that smashed parts of Samoa hits the outer reefs as it approaches land. Photo: AP
At this point my boat was so inverted by the tension on the nose that the rear of the boat was sticking up out of the water and the prop on the engine couldn’t move us anywhere because it wasn’t in contact with the water. Darren laid himself along the rear of the boat in order to put enough weight on the back end to get the prop into the water. We got the boat to power just barely fast enough against the speed of the surge so that we could get just enough slack on the line in order to pull the lanyard off of the hook on the nose of the boat and release us from getting pulled under. As soon as we got free from the mooring line I turned us out through the channel and we went out to sea to wait out the tsunami.
We sat way outside of the shelf just to be safe, and watched as the surges powered toward shore and absolutely leveled everything. Complete devastation the likes of which I have never witnessed before, everything was washed away into everything else, boats into huts into cars into trees, with water surging about a mile inland in some areas. The melee of destruction was unfathomable, as the muddy and debris-saturated flow of water pulsed in and out about 4 times before finally receding back into the ocean.
watched as the surges powered toward shore and absolutely leveled everything.
When we came back in to survey the damage is when the severity of the situation really began to sink in. Everything on the south coast was leveled, from high-end luxury resorts and low-budget surf huts, to churches and the local Samoans’ traditional fales (open-walled dwellings with a cement foundation and four posts supporting a tin roof). It was absolutely devastating to see the power of the ocean take everything out in a matter of minutes. I found my car about a quarter of a mile inland, crushed like it was in a trash compactor, flipped upside down and sitting on top of another car’s roof, stuck in between some trees. I realized I was one of the only people on the south coast whose boat had not been destroyed because it was out at sea when the tsunami struck. Unfortunately, numerous people lost their lives during this tragedy and our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of those suffering from this loss. It was an intensely depressing day, with everyone in shock at how to begin the recovery process from this horrific event. Without a doubt this was the gnarliest experience I have ever gone through in my life.
From Neil Lumsden:Malo Lava Family And Friends,
Thank you all so much for your emails and support, we really appreciate it. So many of you have expressed an interest in helping the people of Samoa get back on their feet, which they badly need. Many of you may know our beloved family in Tafitoala who run the Sina PJ beach fales (Malae, Netina, Sina , PJ, Jery, Aska, little Will, and the elders). Fortunately the entire family survived the horrific ordeal of the tsunami, but now they need all the help they can get to rebuild their homes as well as their lives. A Relief Fund has been set up in their name to help mitigate the costs of rebuilding. Anyone interested in helping out this wonderful family please send donations to:
Sina PJ Tsunami Relief Fund
National Bank of Samoa
Account# 5-138777-005
Swift Code: NBSLWSWS
Check out the photo gallery below…
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October 6th, 2009 at 3:18 am
reality check - a small day on the upper Texas coast is nothing to be bummed about when our brothers and sisters have been devastated. thoughts and prayers.
October 6th, 2009 at 4:10 am
Thoughts and prayers go out to you
October 6th, 2009 at 4:51 am
Thank God you, your son and his young friend got loose in time to head out. Thanks to the help of the other surfer, Darren, too! There are so many variables here that might have led to a different ending, had you not realized what was happening as fast as you did, you might not have made it back to the boat in time. If Darren was not there to weigh down the back of the boat to get the prop in, you might not have gotten free of the mooring in time. Fast thinking and you surely had angels looking out for you and those boys.
Thank you for this great account, it helps us understand the tsunami. How big were the waves that you saw?
Your friend at the Jersey Shore, Susan
October 6th, 2009 at 5:10 am
mean the hawaiian-named-haoleh kids…
October 6th, 2009 at 5:38 am
What a story. Can't imagine how intense that must have been.
October 6th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Amazing survival story. Thank God you knew what to do and the boys were not washed into shore without you returning to the boat. Quick thinking and knowledge of the situation at hand really saved you all.
Hard to imagine the situation you were in.
You are all blessed.
Ingrid Lindfors
Lake Michigan Chapter
October 6th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
If I name my blond-haired kid something Hawaiian will he get a free pass on the North Shore later in life? If not, I'm going to go with something Chinese just in case we get taken over down the road… they'd never hurt a kid named Mao, would they?
October 6th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
what a nightmare and it is amazing what good ole mother nature can do. My Thoughts and Prayers also go out to everyone who was involved. Burton
October 6th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
tru dat burton…. prayers to EVERYONE, specifically da local sAmoans…. as it is the locals who really suffering,
da others can fly home and go pull the orange juice outta da fridge and put some bread in da toaster, scrambo some eggs..
October 6th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Cmon townboi, I doubt you really understand the suffering from the locals or the OTHERS !! Speak the language man….
October 7th, 2009 at 2:31 am
growing up in a third world country and currently being paid to analyze and research natural disasters…. i think i have nuff of wun understanding bruh.
October 7th, 2009 at 2:33 am
experiment in progress.. mr. kalani david.
October 7th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
There's information at the bottom of the post about how to donate to a local family that has hosted many a traveling surfer and lost everything…
October 7th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
simply pointing out my ~ negative comments in this feature while i was drunk…
yes i saw the little box justin thanks
October 8th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
Nui pilikea. What can you do. need to be able to warn the people sooner. Must work on making this a priority.
October 9th, 2009 at 7:37 pm
So chuffed to hear you guys are all alive and well (though Neil you probably won't remember me even if I caught more and better waves than you when we went surfing, and I was on a sponge! I bet Manoa won't remember Ella and Noah either). Been searching for news about sina pj fales on the net since it all happened, thanks so much for posting all this. Please send Malai and Natina huge amounts of love, Ant, Anna, Ella and Noah xxxxx
October 9th, 2009 at 11:39 pm
Good news about Malae Netina and whanau. Thanks for the post. Past guest at Sina PJ. James (NZ)
October 10th, 2009 at 3:32 am
Oh we have wondered about the fate of Malae and his family so much in this last week…it is a relief to know they are ok. So many others are suffering I know. Thanks for posting the link to their bank account.
Rata Sidwell (NZ)
October 14th, 2009 at 1:08 am
Thank the Lord you two (& others) are safe! I Dont know what I would do if you werent!
WE have already sent what we could & are trying to raise monies through church now!
I'll be in touch, keep up the good work!
I know all the funerals must be getting hard by now, too…
Love to you, Manoa too, Tofa, Auntie Kymm
October 20th, 2009 at 12:17 am
Neil, thanks for your story, 2 days ago i was looking for help with getting money to Natina and Malae, amazing to think Me greg and Cam were out sufring with you in May and it could have happened then! wow.
Really want to help Malae and Natina out as they were with out a doubt the most wonderful family on the isalnd, so giving. Is the bank acnt theirs? would love to come over and help and build as i'm and electrician.
for further contact.. Email. forwarrenwilletts@yahoo.co.nz i want to put your story to the NZ surf mags and get you some help too, get people surfing there again. Warren.
October 22nd, 2009 at 2:45 pm
Neil,
This is an incredible story. I will share it with my Oceanography students at Cabrillo College in Aptos California. We are all so glad you and your son came out of this OK. Thank you for sharing this amazing experience. Our thoughts and prayers go out to family and friends of those who did not survive. Take care.
David Schwartz
November 9th, 2009 at 2:30 am
Wow, yes, I totally agree and am thanking the Lord that all this went your way. We must also pray for people who are alive but have not been found yet. Keep them in your prayers, because, remember, God CAN do ANYHTING.
Belle x
January 6th, 2010 at 1:41 pm
Talofa from Samoa,
I am a writer who has been commisioned to write a book on the Samoa tsunami. It will be launched on the one year anniversary and coincide with the national memorial. It is a non-profit project and all proceeds will go to tsunami rebuilding. I would like to ask if you would be willing to share your story so that I can refer to it in the book?
I look forward to you reply. Please email me at the above email address.