It’s not just on the roads that NRMA has been helping people. NRMA President Alan Evans brought a little ray of sunshine to many tsunami-ravaged Sri Lankans when he presented them with a heartfelt gift from NRMA staff and Members. Needra D’Souza reports.
He walks toward me until his eyes are inches from mine. It’s hard to judge his age: his skin is smooth and his waist, cloaked in a traditional sarong, slight but his eyes look sad and tired. And then he says to me in halting English, “Tsunami, my son, 20 years, gone.”
Surrounding us are tents and wooden huts, temporary housing that has been home for thousands of families in Sri Lanka, devastated by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. Behind us sits what is left of a train carriage. The battered ochre red compartment is pockmarked with dents and inside lies a tangled mess of wood and metal so twisted they look like they’re made of putty. The seats are ripped apart, the windows smashed and mountains of debris litters the aisles.
I’m with NRMA Motoring & Services President Alan Evans and Contracted Network Development and Support Manager, Col Neate and we are humbled by the devastation we see and speechless by the stories of loss we hear.
Ironically, just metres in front of us lies an idyllic scene: a deep blue cloudless sky frames powder white sand and sparkling turquoise water. Coconut trees stand proud and tall, and banana trees sway and flutter in a gentle breeze. When you think of a place like Sri Lanka, the pearl of the Indian Ocean, this is what comes to mind.
The grieving father invites us into his home — a wooden hut smaller than a single garage. He lives there with his wife, his sister, her baby and his mother. Their possessions are few, some cooking utensils, mats for the floor, a plastic chair and, in the corner, a photo of his son.
This is a familiar tale. The wave virtually engulfed the island of Sri Lanka, in some places smashing its way two kilometres inland. Its devastating effects are extensive: in towns just 20 km south of Colombo; along popular west-coast beach resorts like Hikkadua; up the east coast of the island; north into Jaffna, homebase of the Tamil Tigers; and south to the historical town of Galle, where the scoreboard at the famous Galle Cricket Oval is frozen at 92 runs, the score of one team at the time the tsunami hit.
* as of March 11, 2005
Like others in Australia and around the world, the staff of NRMA were deeply affected by what we all saw on our TV screens at a time of year devoted to families and festivities. Staff contributed a total of $27,000 toward the relief effort, matched dollar for dollar by the Board, as well as donating van loads of food and clothes. But for some it was also personal, with family and friends living in Sri Lanka.
One such person was Romesh Lokuge, NRMA’s Head of Business Planning. NRMA flew Romesh back to Sri Lanka within days of the tsunami so he could check on family and friends, but also to contact the Ceylon Automobile Association (NRMA’s equivalent in Sri Lanka) to find out how we could help.
Romesh’s family were unharmed, though sadly he lost 11 friends.
“In Sri Lanka, an executive committee meeting was held with me and many options of how NRMA could help were discussed,” says Romesh.
What was clear was that the Ceylon AA’s efforts to help with the clean-up of the tsunami were hampered by the fact that they were poorly resourced.
“I thought [a] tow truck was the best and most practical idea and brought this suggestion back to our Board.”
Romesh also discovered that a patrolman with the Ceylon AA, R. P. Wijesekera, had lost his home in the tsunami. He was on duty at the Colombo headquarters of the Ceylon AA when he got word that his house in Kalutara had been washed away. His wife survived by clinging to what was once the front door of their home for hours before being rescued.
“After hearing the trauma [the patrolman] and his family had been through and the financial plight he was in, I thought it would be good if we could do something. In my report to the Board, I made a recommendation for a donation,” says Romesh.
“It was obvious they didn’t have the equipment to remove the vehicles destroyed by the tsunami or the piles of rubble that were left,” says Alan.
“The Board unanimously agreed to provide the funds to purchase a tow truck and trailer which would serve a dual purpose: help with the clean-up and help out our sister organisation, the Ceylon AA.
“It also agreed to donate $8000 of the funds raised by our staff to Mr Wijesekera so he could rebuild his family home. In light of such a terrible disaster, it was the least we could do.”
Obtaining and getting the truck to Sri Lanka wasn’t without its challenges.
“We had to make sure the truck complied with importing laws in Sri Lanka and that it met the fuel demands over there,” says Col. (The first truck sourced was powered by LPG which is not readily available in Sri Lanka.)
“It also had to be less than seven years old with low kilometres on the clock so it had longevity.”
A truck fitting the bill was found and the tow lifting equipment fitted to the back. The trailer was one NRMA had developed as part of a project to provide damage-free towing for Country Service Centres that didn’t have a tow truck in the area. All up the tow truck and trailer cost $35,000.
Both Alan and Col went to Colombo to hand over the tow truck and trailer and help train Ceylon AA staff on how to operate them. Training was as challenging as the weather on the day, which alternated between sudden downpours and sweltering heat.
“Locating the parts was interesting,” says Col. “None of them were in the places they were put when we sent it over. There were no parts missing and there was no damage, it’s just they were in really obscure places — the straps for the trailer were found in a compartment at the back of the truck used for oil!”
“Also, because theft can be an issue in a big city like Colombo, every time I put a piece of equipment down, someone would pick it up and put it back in the office. I’d turn around to pick it up again and it had already been taken back to the ‘safety’ of the office.”
At first the training was just Col, Ceylon AA’s Chief Engineer and a few dedicated tow truck drivers who worked for the Ceylon AA. The more the training progressed the bigger the ‘class’ size grew to include the security guards, office staff, even passers-by, all keen to become part of the spectacle.
Another amusing cultural difference was the ubiquitous Sri Lankan nod of the head every time Col asked if they understood a point he made.
“In Australia, I’d be inundated with questions. Here, they’re too shy and polite. They think it’s rude to question. So they just nodded. Eventually, whenever I explained something I got them to show me they could do it.
“After a few training sessions, I felt they understood the operation of the equipment.”
The formalities that surrounded the handover showed how much NRMA’s donation meant to the Ceylon AA.
“Clearly the Ceylon AA were very keen to demonstrate their pleasure and show us how important [the truck and trailer] were to them,” says Alan. “It was great our Organisation could do something this beneficial to help them.”
Alan handed the President, Shanti Guneratne, the keys to the truck watched by the Deputy President Rajah Sinnathuray, the Board and a full compliment of patrolmen and staff.
“We wanted to help with the tsunami relief but had no equipment,” says Shanti. “With this tow truck, we can provide so much more assistance.”
Shanti said the Ceylon AA will use the equipment primarily to help shift debris and transport building equipment to the affected areas and, secondly, for day-to-day tows.
“We are so grateful to the Board and Members of NRMA for their generosity and kindness during one of our country’s most trying times,” says Shanti.
Like NRMA Motoring & Services, the Ceylon AA is a Member organisation, offering its 15,000 Members roadside assistance. “Their patrols are proud of their organisation and take real pride in their work — just like ours,” says Col.
Ceylon AA’s patrol fleet of 32 Honda Hero motorcycles looks after Members in Colombo, while eight ‘garages’ in other major cities offer assistance elsewhere.
“In the past, the Ceylon AA focused on being a club that gave roadside assistance,” says Alan. “It’s only now they are looking at increasing the range of benefits to Members. I offered them our expertise which may be of benefit to them as they grow, as the country becomes more affluent and more people own cars.”
The Ceylon AA had set up a Tsunami Relief Fund with donations from motoring clubs in other countries. The aim of the fund is to build a friendship village: building houses and rebuilding communities for families left homeless in Kalutara (42 km south of Colombo).
At the invitation of the Ceylon AA we travelled to Kalutara to see what was planned. Scenes of utter devastation still exist. Houses smashed to pieces — and we’re not talking flimsy beach huts. Solid, double-brick homes, almost sawn in half, concrete balustrades twisted and crushed; half a house vanished into a hole (ironically part of the bathroom still stood with toiletries still on the shelf). On another, the only part of the house that remains is the front wall with a plaque that poignantly asks: God bless our house.
It was on this journey we met the grieving father. We also met a group of inspiring young people: volunteers from the Singapore International Foundation. In a shell of a house they were building beds with locals. One of the volunteers, Kelvin, said it was “hard, hot work but so rewarding”.
Our main destination was a camp called Ethana Madala at Kalutara where 64 families, including 226 children, 56 of whom were under 12, lived in tents on a grass clearing. The local police inspector, Mr G. Nandacena, oversees the camp, ensuring the children go to school, offering counselling (along with overseas aid workers) and even setting up a jail for any misbehaviours. In his office a chalk board shows a summary of sad statistics — total number of deaths, houses destroyed — along with a few happy announcements, the safe delivery of twin boys by a camp mother. Infrastructure is non-existent: there is no electricity and water is brought in from a police training school almost seven kilometres away. Every family that occupies a tent lost at least one member of their family in the tsunami.
We heard stories of parents who stood in their tents for hours during a downpour, holding their small children because the water was up to their knees so they couldn’t put them down.
“You couldn’t help but feel enormous sadness and sorrow and be affected by the devastation wrought on these people,” says Alan. “Ninety per cent are fishermen and they’ve lost their boats and therefore their livelihoods.”
“Compared to the tsunami, the disasters we’ve experienced in Australia, like the 2003 Canberra bushfires, have been small and we have excellent support networks to help. But their future is still so uncertain.”
This catastrophe shows on the faces of the adults but the children still have a look of precious innocence.
“In what were very basic conditions it was amazing to see the children head off to school in their immaculate white uniforms. They still had their pride and were so keen to get on with life. I couldn’t help but be moved and think we have to do something,” says Alan.
“It’s hard to appreciate it from here but we have a duty as a society to help.”
One bright moment was meeting the Ceylon AA patrolman Mr Wijesekera, whose house was rebuilt thanks to NRMA’s donation.“To see the big grin on his face, I’ll never forget it, he was one very happy individual. I really got a sense I was able to see the real fruits of our donation,” says Col.
“We can do a number of things as an organisation,” says Alan. “First, we can help the Ceylon AA to grow and become a key part of the Sri Lanka community. Second, we can build a comprehensive plan to help rebuild Kalutara with help from other motoring clubs here and in the region.
“And third, we can develop travel packages to help rebuild the economy which has been devastated and help our Members to see what a beautiful country Sri Lanka is, especially the areas that weren’t affected physically by the tsunami but feel the effects of it through the loss of tourist dollars.
“Compared to Sri Lanka, we’re an extremely lucky country.”
If your organisation would like to get involved in rebuilding a village or you would like to join an NRMA Club Tour to Sri Lanka, please email open.road@mynrma.com.au or write to us at The Open Road, Level 23, 388 George Street, Sydney, NSW 2000.
NRMA sincerely thanks the following companies for their generous donation to the Tsunami Relief Tow Truck and Trailer: Nationwide Towing P/L, Optic Signs, AVA Automotive, Oak Flats Smash Repairs, Metal Morphis and Club Assist.
Car reviews
