Eruption

Two Days of Terror in New Hebrides

Port Vila, Nov. 11.

RAIDS over the British Isles and war’s alarms in Europe have been eclipsed for the time being in the New Hebrides by volcanic eruptions nearer home.

At 5.15 on the evening of November 1, as European residents were tuning in for the Empire war bulletins from Dav entry, there occurred a convulsive earth tremor which made the island houses plunge and rock like a ship at sea.

On Paama, where it was especially ter rifying, the ’quake was followed by a deafening roar, which made the natives imagine that a mountain dam had burst and a flood of water was rushing down upon the village. Quick as lightning, the houses emptied and the natives came trooping in an excited state to the Mis sion station. Even the cattle were alarmed and careered around in the same excited state.

After a painful suspense, there ap peared over the mountain ridge a dense cloud of volcanic ash, ascending in spiral columns to a wondrous height, and pre senting a unique spectacle, with the rays of the setting sun illuminating the curi ous cerebreform mass.

With a sense almost of relief a multi tude of voices exclaimed, “It’s Lopevi.

The volcano has burst out again”.

After a comparative rest of 42 years, the volcano had come to life again and alarmed the neighbourhood.

VIOLENT tremors continued every few minutes all night long, producing a very disturbing effect. Nobody slept. The natives spent the night in the open air.

At midnight, the excitement was in tensified by the arrival of fugitives from the villages on the east coast of Paama, which face Lopevi and are separated from it only by a narrow channel. They re ported that a volcano had burst out on Lopevi. not in the old crater, 5,000 ft. high, but on a low hill near the village of Tamatu. and that a river of molten lava had over-run the houses and com pletely destroyed "the village compound.

As volumes of ash swept across the channel to Paama, and descended in heavy showers upon the villages, the natives became alarmed and fled across the dividing ridge to seek the shelter of the mission station. But it was impos sible to dodge the ashes and ’quakes any where on Paama. All night long the ashes fell, and the solid earth trembled.

When morning dawned, Paama was completely covered by a dismal and for bidding mantle of black volcanic ash.

So charged was the atmosphere with sulphuric acid that the residents had difficulty in breathing, and could they have obtained gas masks they would have been tempted to copy the practice of the war zones.

The air was heavily loaded with elec tricity, and it transformed the wireless sets into quick-firing machine guns, discharging a never-ending series of ex plosions.

LIVING in constant dread of a renew ed outburst, the Lopevi natives kept two whale boats ready for emergencies, and it was expected that, at the first sign of danger, the boats would be brought into instant service.

But the Paama trader, Mr. Walter Me-

Coy, a kindhearted and daring Norfolk Islander, felt that he had better go and ascertain if the Lopevi people needed assistance. The entire population of 160 is divided up into three villages; and he proceeded direct to Tamatu. where the eruption was reported to have taken place.

Six hours later he returned with a boat load of women and children, many of whom were badly bruised and burn ed.

So sudden and unexpected had the outbreak been that at a moment’s no tice the natives had had to rise and run, leaving everything behind. A river of molten lava, flowing from the newly formed crater, wiped out all the houses

and, on its way to the sea, destroyed one of the whale-boats and boathouse.

Mr. McCoy found the river red hot lava discharging its contents into the sea, producing a seething cauldron and rendering it impossible to approach the beach of Tamatu. He found the village buried in ashes and lava, the only indication that it was once the site of a village being the roof of the weatherboard church appearing above the ruins.

In the flight from the volcano, five natives (two adults and three infants) had been trapped by the fire and kill ed. The others escaped to a sheltered part of the beach, at the north end of the island, and there awaited the

chance of a rescuing boat from Paama.

The babies appear to have been struck and killed by flying stones, as they were borne upon the shoulders of their flee ing mothers.

The native men displayed bravery and consideration: none of them attempted to rush the boats, but gave the women and children the first chance of res cue.

WITH the promise that he would re turn for the men as quickly as he could, Mr. McCoy set off for the Paama mission station with his first load of refugees. As if the volcano were not sufficient to strike terror into the hearts of the people, the launch had to battle through an angry sea, which made the fugitives wonder whether they had es caped the fire only to be enguifed in the waves. They arrived at the mission sta tion as miserable and dejected as they could possibly be. It was very noticeable that none of the refugees carried any baggage. They escaped in what they stood up in.

Twenty-four hours after the first out break a succession of severe earth-tremors was a prelude to further volcanic out bursts and, on returning next day, the rescuers found the whole island enveloped in fire. Six more vents had formed — five near the beach, in the neighbour hood of villages, and one near the sum mit. The natives had succeeded in launching the other whale-boat, in the face of great danger, and joined the rescue parties in conveying the refugees to Paama.

There were still 30 people at the vil lage of Halehos, whom it was impossible to reach on account of high seas and lava flows.

But Mr. Wale, of the Seventh Day Adventist Mission, chanced to arrive on the scene, and readily responded to a

suggestion that he should make another attempt at rescue.

In spite of falling cinders, and big breakers on the shore, Mr. Wale suc ceeded in rescuing the last 33 people of Lopevi and conveying them to the Paama Mission Station.

THE whole population has now been transferred to Paama, and has been billeted out among the villages in the neighbourhood of the mission station. But the refugees have lost everything—gar dens, houses and personal belongings.

The people of Paama have risen to the occasion, and are showing unbounded hospitality to their stricken brethren.

Suffering from wounds and burns, crowds of refugees are attending the mission dis pensary for medical treatment.

Mr. P. A. Harvey, of the Epi Wireless Station, informed the Condominium Government by wireless of the erup tion of the volcano and the hapless plight of the natives; and the Government quickly responded by sending from Vila a liberal and much-appreciated supply of foodstuffs.—M.F.

Explosion Forecast In 1938

IN 1938. Lopevi was described as “a vol canic cone rising sheer out of the sea to a height of 5,000 ft. Though 12 miles in circumference, the island has no harbour or anchorage”.

In the “P.1.M.”, July, 1938, this was published: “There is consternation among the natives of Lopevi because the vol cano, after bursting out intermittently for nearly half a century, has suddenly closed down. The natives, primitive though they are, have sufficient know ledge of mechanics to understand that the closing of a safety valve is as dan gerous in a volcano as in a steam engine.

“Accompanied by a large number of natives, Mr. W. H. Grube climbed to the

summit and found neither crater nor volcano.

“When they descended with the news that the volcano had closed in, the re port struck terror into the hearts of the natives, who inhabit the villages nest ling in sheltered positions at the base of the mountain. The old natives have a grim recollection that the volcano closed down before the last big eruption in 1898. when it exploded with a convul sive outburst, obliterating one of the villages”.

Those fears were completely justified.

Practically the whole population of Samarai assembled on the evening of No vember 3, at the residence of Mr. and Mrs. E. Gribben, to say good-bye to Mr. and Mrs. E. J. O’Donnell. Mr. O’Donnell is leaving Samarai after several years there as officer-in-charge of the radio station. Warm tributes were paid by vari ous speakers to the good qualities of Mr. and Mrs. O’Donnell. Rev. Father Dwyer especially thanked Mr. O’Donnell for his co-operation, on numerous occasions, in arranging radio schedules with doctors, so that sick people in isolated places were able to get immediate expert ad vice. Mr. Woodward, R.M., spoke on be half of the Public Service, and Mr. C.

Skelly for the “old-timers”. A welcome was given to Mr. O’Donnell’s successor at the radio station, Mr. Ploughman.

Major C. R. Field has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and appointed to the command of the New Guinea Voluntary Rifles; and Major C.

F. A. Duchatel, M.C.; Captain P. J.

Woodhill, and Lieutenants H. Taylor, J.

H. Edwards, M.C.. D.C.M., M.M., J. C. Mul“ laly, 0.8. E.: A. J. Clark and C. G. Kil ner, who also hold commissions on the Reserve of Officers, Australian Military Forces, have been appointed to the unit.