From being a well to do family consisting of Yayan’s father, a respected boat-owner and fisherman and his mother, 10 children, most of whom were married and had children of their own, they had in minutes dwindled to only 3 survivors – Yayan, the only male, his 14 year old sister and an older sister. ‘Now I’ll have to start from zero, he says, but gives thanks to God that his boat, the ‘Selat Malaka’ was still in one piece, though the tsunami had driven it inland & set it down between 2 buildings at a University Campus in town.
A big boat like that can employ 25 people, but it is more than a vehicle or source of livelihood. It is the device with which the fishermen come to terms with the forces of the ocean – forces that issue forth both sustenance and ruin. It’s what they know and they want to get back to the sea.
The recovery of the ‘Selat Malaka’ represents a step towards a hopeful future – and on the 11th of May the boat reached the riverbank where it will undergo the repairs needed before it is fit for the ocean again. 15 – 20 men and 2 Caterpillar Bulldozers worked 2 ˝ days under wet & muddy conditions to push the heavy boat forward. The successful move and prospect of fishing is a very encouraging ‘breakthrough’ towards economic & psychological recovery for both Yayan & his small community of survivors.
