BY AILEEN MURPHY
A Garrison priest living and working in the South American country of Peru experienced first-hand the devastating earthquake which has left more 540 people dead.
Fr Cathal Gallagher, a Columban Missionary, has been living in the capital city of Lima for the last 18 years. He explained that, during this time, he, like other residents, has become accustomed to 'earth tremors'.
However, he went on: "Wednesday evening was something very different. It was 6.40pm local time and I had just left the office where I work, as the director of an institute for the prevention and care of people living with HIV/AIDS. I had taken a taxi, the car started to sway and I said to the driver, "What is the matter with the suspension"? Then we saw the people pouring out of the buildings, on to the streets. Traffic stopped and the panic of living through an earthquake began.
"Initially, I had a variety of questions, 'Is this ever going to stop?'; 'Is it going to get stronger?'; 'Is the panic that is around me going to multiply?' And the other question, of which I am now somewhat ashamed, 'Is this panic really necessary?' ".
Fr Gallagher said the panic was as if the people had a collective memory of the devastating effect an earthquake can bring.
"On the streets of Lima, one could see the fear and anxiety on the faces of the people. Suddenly, hundreds of mobile phones came out of pockets and the calls to home and families started. People started to desperately look for contact with relatives and friends. But then, the telephone network collapsed adding to the sense of impotency and panic among the population."
In the hours following the earthquake, Fr Gallagher said the passage of the time allowed people to understand the magnitude of the destruction caused: at least 540 died and more than 1,800 injured as a result of the earthquake.
"Numbers of dead and injured are sure to rise", he surmised, " as the authorities have not as yet been able to reach outlying villages. The greater number of victims is in the city of Pisco. In one dramatic situation, in the church of San Clemente approximately 300 people were at Mass at the time of the earthquake, when the roof fell, leaving many victim".
The mayor of Pisco, graphically described the difficult situation in a dramatic testimony in which he requested urgently medical aid from the government for his city, of about 130,000 inhabitants. "The city is 70% destroyed and we have hundreds of dead lying on the streets. The situation is totally indescribable. We do not have water, we do not have communication, the houses have fallen, we have injured in the hospitals; the churches are destroyed".
In Lima also, scenes of horror were lived after the long minutes of tremors and shaking.
"In Lima the telephones do not work, but the provision of water and light was not affected. Wednesday night, people lay down thinking of the magnitude of the earthquake. The sirens of the Police and the firemen resounded in the entire city and it took several hours before the traffic returned to normal.
"I work beside the Ministry for Work", he explained, " and it is closed completely with huge cracks in several parts of the building. There are several other parts of Lima where the precarious state of buildings is apparent and all that I can say is Lima was lucky that it was not the epicentre of this earthquake. We could have ended up with a catastrophe of colossal magnitude, a population of 9,000,000 and a fragile infrastructure."
Reflecting on the earthquake, Fr Gallagher suggested that a tragedy brought out the best and the worst in everyone.
"The solidarity with those who are less fortunate is clear to see, with mountains of donations of water, non-perishable food and clothes being collected outside TV stations, Municipal offices and supermarkets.
"At the same time there are many complaints of delays in the aid arriving, together with reports of looting and disorder emerging. Generally, this kind of activity is not carried out by those in need but rather by those who wish to take advantage of the situation of chaos.
"Questions are being asked about the lack of organisation in a country where there is the constant possibility of an earthquake and, in spite of the promises by President Alan Garcia of both aid and security, there are resounding calls for both of these issues to be resolved quickly".
He stated that the Peruvian people were resilient and that, given the right conditions, they would overcome tragedy.
"A number of these people and me were going to visit the affected area this last weekend, to bring some basic supplies and also to show solidarity with other people living with HIV/AIDS in the area. However, we had to abandon the mission as the Minister for Transport asked that the roads be left clear for the aid effort. We also know that there will be other weekends when we can do so," he concluded. In the meantime, external aid has been pouring in, although the job of rebuilding the cities of Pisco and Ica will take years.
