Cyclone Oli hit the island sometime yesterday. I'm not really sure when since Tumata and I are opposite where it hit. The winds came from the NE, and we went to her home in Papara on the west coast. When a cyclone hits, there are extremely strong winds. If you're in the area but not "hit," you experiene a lot of rain. In Papara, it hasn't really stopped raining since yesterday. Lucky for us it's only rain!
We lost electricity last night and water sometime while we were sleeping. The electricity came back on a while ago.
It was pretty stressful yesterday. UPF sits on a hill, and at lunch I could see the waves breaking against the reef just past the marina. Quite a few boats are docked there because it's so calm. To be able to see the waves breaking meant there was something coming.
Then, one of the ferries that travels to Moorea came into the marina area, which it NEVER does, nor is it supposed to, went through the marina, only to cut back towards Moorea. I could hear students talking about how the waves were reaching the streets in Papeete and that all the schools in the town were canceled.....hence the ferry cutting through the marina....the waves were too rough.
A few minutes later, school officials posted signs across campus canceling afternoon classes. It's no suprise that classes are canceled for today.
Code Red went into affect last night and is still in affect. Cars aren't allowed on the road, and the Gendarme -French police- are stationed throughout the island fining drivers.
Tumata spoke with her aunt this morning, and houses in her aunt's town have lost roofs and/or damaged homes. I can only imagine what happened in Papeete!
I feel so blessed and yet helpless. While I'm safe, have a roof over my head, and working electricity, there are people across the island without a home right now. I hope that when this is over, Simpson will have a hand in helping the island recover.
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