smac97 Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 My brother lives in Samoa and has had intermittent Internet access during the last 24 hours. He has told us that Cyclone Evan has caused significant damage to Samoa. We have not heard from him for several hours, which we hope is attributable to a power outage. In one of his last messages he said that the Apia Samoa temple has been damaged, though the extent is uncertain.Sadly, there have also been some deaths reported in news items.Here:http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/1242724/1/.htmlOfficials in Samoa confirmed two deaths on Friday in the wake of Cyclone Evan and warned the storm was heading back to the capital Apia, which has already been hit by power cuts and flash flooding.The cyclone, described by witnesses as the worst in decades, hit the Pacific island nation on Thursday afternoon, uprooting trees, bringing down power lines and flooding much of the city centre.Hundreds of people were forced to seek shelter in evacuation centres as high winds tore roofs off homes and the Vaisigano river, which runs through the centre of the capital, burst its banks.A Disaster Management Office spokeswoman said there had been at least two confirmed deaths, while media reported a number of children were missing after being swept away by the raging river.Here:http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-14/children-feared-swept-away-in-samoa-cyclone/4428038Police in Samoa say a number of children are presumed to have drowned after being swept away in a flooded river when Cyclone Evan hit the South Pacific nation.The cyclone made landfall yesterday and caused widespread damage across the country, cutting power, causing flooding and ripping trees from their roots.Locals say it is the worst storm to hit the region in recent years, and a state of disaster has been declared.There are now fears the storm could intensify to a category five cyclone as it tracks across the north of Tonga and then moves onto Fiji.New Zealand's high commissioner to Samoa, Nick Hurley, says police have told him a number of children went missing near the main river in Samoa's capital Apia.Many places in Samoa have only just rebuilt after being devastated by a tsunami in 2009.Authorities in Fiji have gone into emergency preparation as the cyclone threatens to head towards the country.Fiji's weather bureau says the storm could eventually become a category five cyclone - packing winds at its core of 360 kilometres per hour - and on its current path would hit both of the nation's main islands.My brother's Facebook page has some additional photos:http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.533827846632700.141324.100000164677377&type=1I'll provide further updates as we receive them.-Smac
Avatar4321 Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 Ill be praying that your brother and his family are safe. 1
Duncan Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 that's awful and I hope everyone finds comfort. This is the second time the Samoa Temple was damaged, the first was when it burned to the ground
Garden Girl Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 I'm so sorry smac... prayers going forward...GG
thesometimesaint Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 So sorry to hear about the cyclone. That is such a beautiful part of the world.
cdowis Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 Thanks for sharing. We get so involved with out situation here in the US that we forgt about what is going on in the rest of the world.To have children swept away -- how terrible.
Anakin7 Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 My Prayers are with you !.In His Debt/GraceAnakin7LDS JEDI KNIGHT
bluebell Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 I hope your brother is alright. It must be hard not to know what's going on.
Bill “Papa” Lee Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 Sad...the most Mormon country in the world.
Tacenda Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 (edited) This is terrible. The destruction that continually goes on in the world, hopefully the Red Cross will be able to get there fast, also the church. Edited December 14, 2012 by Tacenda
Calm Posted December 14, 2012 Posted December 14, 2012 (edited) Bad time of year for that part of the world. Was just reading what happened last year on the church website while looking to see if there was any response yet posted for the current situation.Forgot to put the current link up: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/cyclone-evan-slams-samoan-islands Edited December 14, 2012 by calmoriah
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