Solomon Islands flooded by Japan tsunami: The Church of England Newspaper, April 21, 2011 p 7.

Bishop Naramana addressing his 2009 dicoesan synod

First published in The Church of England Newspaper.

Ripples from the powerful March 11 earthquake and tsunami that devastated North East Japan were felt over 3700 miles south in the Solomon Islands, the  Church of the Province of  Melanesia reports.

Bishop Richard Naramana of the Diocese of Ysabel reports that at approximately 2:00 am local time on March 12, tsunami waves generated by the magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit the Isabel, Malaita, Choiseul and Central Island provinces of the Solomon Islands, seven hours after the quake rocked Japan.

The Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation reported that a tribal elder Chief Johnson Leamana said the sea level rose three metres on Isabel and swept inland.  In a letter to his companion Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn, Bishop Naramana said “it was a fearful experience having to be awaken at night in panic, carrying children, shouting to each other ‘ are you alright?’ to each other in the dark; being swept away by the high wave.”

The bishop reported that the cost of the damages to the diocesan offices was approximately £23,000.  “I am praying as to how we will recover the damages done to the Diocese by the recent Tsunami. On the next day as I walked around the diocesan area, I shed tears as how I will rebuild the Diocese from the damages.”

“Here is but just a brief story of the tsunami that has affected the diocesan area,” the bishop wrote.

“There are homes which were completely destroyed and there are families in Buala, Maglau, Nareabu and around the diocese where they have lost everything. Their houses were completely destroyed by the waves.”

“The effect of the recent Tsunami was great,” he said, but thanked God that “nobody lost their lives” in the Solomon Islands from the tragedy.