Since about the 21st of January we have had a series of “weather events” around the Fiji group and after 2 full weeks of warnings, rain and all that is associated with it I am going to tell you all about it!
Well the most recent system, or should I say systems… that have arrived in Fiji are 2 tropical depressions located West, Southwest of the Fiji group. They started near the coast of Vanuatu which lies to the West of Fiji and have been moving closer over the past week or so.
We started out with just one tropical depression in that area that was projected (until yesterday) to become a tropical cyclone and hit Fiji. We were informed yesterday via radio that there was no longer a risk of that depression becoming a cyclone. The Peace Corps sends us out text messages to inform us of severe weather updates and what we should be doing to be prepared for such events. On January 30th we received a text to stock up on food, water, candles, and batteries and prepare our homes for impending cyclone threats. Last week because of severe flooding associated with another storm system, volunteers were prohibited from leaving their villages unless they had explicit permission from the Country Director (for example some volunteers villages were flooded and so they had to move to other volunteers villages etc). The conference that I had on the25th-28th of January was cancelled.
There is normally one boat and one plane that leave the island and come back to the island each day. These have been cancelled for a long time due to rough seas. Because there are no planes or boats, that means that we get no newspapers… which makes me sad. This also means that our one grocery store doesn’t get any more food supplied… which means that we have no veggies that are normally supplied by markets from Suva (ex, potatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, carrots, pumpkin, and apples/oranges (which are too expensive to buy anyway so I just don’t)).
Well just yesterday we were informed of another tropical depression forming to the West off of Vanuatu as well and this one (just today) has a moderate to high chance of becoming a tropical cyclone. This cyclone, should it become that, at this point is expected to veer south of the Fiji group and not make landfall but we will still experience the severe weather conditions associated with it such as major flooding, power and water outages, high winds, etc.
To top this all of there is a low pressure system expected to come in on Friday and Saturday adding to the rain and wind. The weather service here said that no clearing in the weather is expected until at least early next week.
Just to inform you, as I know there are other PCV’s parents who read this blog, all of your children are fine! We are well informed and are all safe. That being said the areas hardest hit are on the Western side of Fiji; Nadi, Lautoka, Ba, Rakiraki towns and villages. Also the Yasawa’s and Mamanuca’s island groups that lie to the Northwest of the main island.
My island is located to the East of Viti Levu and the weather here has not been too terrible. Very persistent rain but no wind yet (at least not strong ones). My island is formed from volcanic activity and so is very mountainous with the villages built on low lying flat planes next to the sea (with the exception of a few villages). My village is right next to the sea facing the Southeast. It is very low and as with many villages in Fiji, is not perfectly flat meaning that the depressed areas are now flooded with rainwater. The creek that runs behind my house has not flooded which is good news, but when the rain coincides with the high tide, it gets a little iffy. The pipes to our water supply have burst meaning that there is now no running water in my village. I have filtered water stored, and buckets outside collecting rainwater. Many people have come to my house offering their supplies of rain water should mine run out (which seems odd.. Because I can just put my buckets outside again under my corrugated tin roof which creates a perfect funnel for water to fill them up quite quickly. The roads around the island are slowly becoming overrun by water making new streams which makes travel really sketchy. Our road is also full of potholes, which when covered with water… you can’t see. This is literally a backbreaker as every 2 seconds you hit another pothole and bounce off the seat in the back of the truck.
So that is my update so far. We will see what happens in the next few days.
The most interesting thing about these storms has been the sense of community that has erupted in the past few days. The “kerekere” system in Fiji is a request system. When living in community, we act in community. Kerekere is basically a “Please, may I….” I have had people come up to my house a lot in the past few days to say, “Au kerekere nomu iviu” (Please may I use your umbrella?) or my cane knife, or to listen to the radio announcements of weather. This system works both ways, as I can go to anyone in the village and say, I have no tea… kerekere au vinakata gunu ti mai ke (please I want to drink tea here. Kerekere can be a terrible thing at times because people will ask for things like my computer, my last onion, my pens (that I will never get back) etc. When living in Fiji you learn to keep certain things secret. For example (see my post on food storage in Fiji) I keep my “good food” that my parents have sent me from the states strung up in a bag in my room, away from their line of sight. I keep anything that I don’t want to have kerekere’d away in my room where they don’t know it exists which works out best for both parties. Some volunteers have a really hard time with the kerekere system which is totally understandable. Coming from a country that believes you make it or break it on your own without relying on those around you, this is a hard system to handle at times. This system can also be abused because we are seen as “rich white people”. Right. Hahaha… I have explained to them a lot of times about poverty in America and student loans (the bane of my existence). We have developed a good relationship with kerekere in my village. And I like it. It means that I can go ask for anything I need at any time from anyone in the village. It also means that that action will be reciprocated by me at some time in the future.
Anyway, I hope the weather where you are is wonderful and that things are going well, until next time!
