To Suva

America’S Micronesian Medical Students Come

Important Development For The Central Medical School

THE arrival in Suva of 50 young natives from Micronesia, to enter the Central Medical School, and undergo the four years’ course, so as to qualify as

Native Medical Practitioners was an un heralded but a very welcome development.

It seems to have followed quickly upon the transfer of the American Trust Territory of Micronesia (Caroline, Marshall and Mariana Islands) from Naval to Civil Administration, which be came effective on July 1, 1950.

There was a period, after the war, when the Americans appeared to hesitate be tween sending their picked native students to the Suva Medical School, and establishing their own Medical School.

Finally, they followed the latter course, and the School was established in Guam, and carried on there for a couple of years.

We have had no reports on the merits of the School, but it has been stated that the institution was far more expensive

than anticipated.

It appears that in the latter part of 1950 the Americans, after inquiry in Guam, and in Fiji, decided to close down the Guam establishment, and send the students to Suva; and the majority of them already have arrived by plane.

Another party is on the way by sea.

The Fiji Government apparently had not expected such quick action, because the arrival of so many new students created immediately an acute problem of accommodation. However, no complaints were made. The compliment paid the

Suva School by the Americans, in de ciding that Suva should train their native medical personal for Micronesia, far out weighed any temporary inconvenience in volved in housing and messing the new arrivals.

The Central Medical School of Suva now becomes by far the most important establishment of the kind in the Pacific.

The American decision is a fine tribute to the work of Dr. D. W. Hoodless, who was principal of the School for so many years, and to Dr. Prater, who has carried on the institution since Dr. Hoodless retired.

THE development again directs atten tion to the position of the Melane sian Territories (Papua-New Guinea, Solomon Islands, New Hebrides) in re lation to the Suva Medical School.

Native students from Solomons and New Hebrides have qualified at the School, in past years; but an attempt made in the last three or four years to similarly train lads from Papua and New Guinea has not been successful. The lads are eager enough; but they simply have not been able to get, in the Melanesian islands, the basic education, in English, which is necessary if they are to receive the training which qualifies them as Assistant Medical Practitioners (as they now are called).

It is believed that the Papua-New Guinea Department of Health is in favour of an establishment somewhere in the Southwest Pacific, organised in such a way that it could give a medical training to selected natives of Papua-New Guinea, and perhaus of Solomons and New Hebrides. This would not be as extensive or as useful as the training given at the Suva School; but it would be planned to make some sort of medical assistants (who are badly needed) out of the more primi tive natives of the SW Pacific.

There was some discussion of the idea a year or two ago; but, like the majority of plans affecting New Guinea adminis tration, it appears to have been shelved, or forgotten.

SOME observers think that this decision of the Americans to support the Suva Medical School may be the fore runner of other important co-operative moves in the administration of the Pacific Islands Territories.

It is pointed out that the administra tive problems of the Marshall, Caroline and Mariana Islands are, to the extent of 90 per cent., similar in character to the problems met with in the government of all the Islands groups of the South Pacific, eastwards of the New Guinea-Solomons- New Hebrides chain. A much larger measure of co-operation and co-ordina tion is possible, in the manner envisaged by the South Pacific Commission.

Sangara Mission

AT Sangara Mission, on a ridge of land sloping away from Higaturu and Mount Lamington, the only building intact was the residence of Father Taylor and his family. This had suffered only slight damage, but the bodies of a Euro pean child —indentified as that of one of the four Taylor children—and two native casualties, were found inside.

Literally hundreds of other natives lay dead around the Mission grounds and in the wrecked buildings', while the bush tracks nearby, and the adjoining gullies, revealed similar terrible toll.

As the patrols returned during the next two and three days, from other areas affected by the blast, it became apparent that at least 4,000 persons had died.

Almost without exception, wherever the blast had struck there were no survivors.

This accounts for the fact that, with the high death roll, there were less than one hundred injured admitted to hospital.

The injured came from the fringe of the blast area and were burnt by hot mud. most of them on the back of the body, indicating that they were attempting to escape.

A NATIVE survivor from the area struck by the falling curtain of hot mud described the eruption. He said that first there was a gurgling sound, like that of boiling water, then a “big torch” shot out of the mountain, followed by a hot black cloud. He said the light from the torch blinded him for a few seconds and, when he could see again, the great black cloud was rolling down on the village. In the path of the cloud it became completely dark, and people sheltering in buildings had to use lamps almost throughout the remainder of the day. One European at Sangara packed his house with terrified natives, and they sat in darkness, breathing through wet cloths and coughing incessantly as they inhaled the thick, pumice-laden air.

Help For The Natives

AN immediate air-lift of food and medical and other supplies was organized, with the co-operation of the airline companies, and evacuation camps established at Wairopi about 16 miles S.E. of Mount Lamington, and at Cape Killerton, on the northern side. By the end of the week, there were 4,000 evacuees at the first camp, and around 1,600 at Killerton. These came from the marginal areas beyond the blast zone, and within the sixteen-miles-radius closed zone recommended by the vulcanologist, Mr. G. A. Taylor. This was calculated on the basis of twice the previous blast area, and as being an essential closed zone in the event of a further eruption.

At Wairopi, a big rice-growing project is being planned, with production carried ?n by village co-operative groups. The Crown owns large areas of land in this district and the aim is to re-settle the displaced natives as quickly as possible, and enable them to become self-support ing- The urgency of this move can be gauged from the fact that it takes a minimum of aearly two tons of rice, meat and other foodstuffs daily to feed the Wairopi camp; and all this has to be taken in by air, either to Kokoda, or by air-drop over the ;amp.

Evacuees at Cape Killerton were later noved to Oro Bay, which is much more Juitable, both from a health and land dewpoint, for an evacuee camp.

The re-settlement of evacuees involves nany problems for the Administration, jomplicated by the fact that from a mlcanological viewpoint so little is known ibout the Mount Lamington volcano.

What decision will be made as to the ‘uture use of land in the wide belt beyond

the immediate vicinity of the volcano will doubtless depend on the conclusions drawn by the vulcanologists after exten sive study of the mountain.

Watch By Scientists

WHEN he visited the Higaturu area ten days after the eruption, Dr N H. Fisher, Chief Geologist of the Commonwealth Bureau of Mineral Re sources, said there was a possibility that the volcano would erupt again within a month of the first eruption. However if it did, the eruption would probably not’ be so severe as the first one.

Dr. Fisher explained that the Mount Lamington volcano was of a rare type, known as a “glowing cloud”; and where these had occurred they had usually erupted again within a month. A similar type of disaster to that of Mount Laming ton had occurred in the French West Indies in 1902, when Mount Pelee erupted and wiped out 30,000 people. In the nearby city of St. Pierre not a single person had survived.

From the Monday following the Mount Lamington eruption, the crater has been under constant survey by Mr. Taylor, the vulcanologist, who had hurried over from Rabaul. He made an aerial survey of the volcano early every morning, and had detailed records kept of its activities.

These varied from slight steam columns to occasional bursts of dust and steam, some of them rising to several thousand feet. At intervals there have been rumb lings from the crater, and tremors have been felt at Popendetta. Now a seismo graph has been set up in the Sangara area, staffed by two members of the geophysical section of the Commonwealth Bureau of Mineral Resources.

WHEN a detailed record of this disaster is compiled, tribute should be paid to all who worked unceasingly in the hectic hours and days immediately following the explosion. Magnificent work, irrespective of personal danger and under great strain was done by all the local Europeans, who rushed to the aid of the

survivors. Then when the Administrator (Colonel J. K. Murray) and his Adminis tration officials arrived, they and their staff did a splendid and speedy job in getting relief and reorganisation plans under way.

By Tuesday morning, patrols had fanned out through the devastated areas, and even before that medical staff were working non-stop to get the remaining injured through to hospital. A lot of hard slogging was also done at Port Moresby and Lae to get supplies organised and handle the huge volume of work en tailed in the emergency measures.

The Territory can well be proud of the fine job done in this emergency—first by Europeans, Government, mission and private individuals in and around the Mount Lamington area, and then by the executives and field staff who took over.