When
Aliyar recounts what happened he says, "I
was sitting down trimming my nails when
I heard my wife and daughter running towards
me, screaming that water was coming.
"I looked round and only 100 metres
away from me, a wall of water about five
feet high came crashing towards my house.
I ran with my family towards the large mosque,
without even stopping to pick up a shirt.
"We took up shelter in the mosque
for three days and after the flooding subsided
I went out to survey the damage. Everything
we had was ruined – including my business
that I spent years building – it was
all swept away by the sea in a matter of
minutes. Carcasses of goats and cows were
strewn everywhere, the scene was horrific.
"Our family compound was full of
rubble, the walls had collapsed and the
sea had washed in fallen trees and debris
from other houses. I did not know where
to begin, or even how to begin, but I estimated
that it would cost me at least 10,000 Rupees
to clear the mess. We moved into my sister's
house about half a kilometer away."
IR brings hope
Aliyar heard that Islamic Relief was working
in his village, clearing roads and houses.
"I was very happy. I couldn't bear
to think how I would clear up the debris,
but Islamic Relief made this achievable."
Islamic Relief staff agreed to help Aliyar
clear his compound and within two days the
debris was gone and the walls rebuilt.
Aliyar and his family have since moved
back into their old home, but they remain
traumatised by the disaster. "We live
in constant fear of another tsunami,"
says Aliyar, "I can’t let my
family go anywhere for more than a day,
I'm scared that I may never see them again."
IR in Sri Lanka
IR staff have cleared rubble from more
than 800 houses and 4,401 compounds, and
repaired 1,200 houses in Sri Lanka's Ampara
region.
Islamic Relief is also providing temporary
homes for 1000 families while permanent
housing is constructed. IR is planning to
build permanent homes for 500 of the neediest
families.