Seven point Six

This post was going to be a summary of my first couple of weeks on the Medical ward, discussing various interesting medical cases encountered including TB, SLE, Typhoid, Dengue, Liver failure and various stages of renal failure however nature abhors a vacuum, and mother nature has stepped in with a far more interesting turn of events…….

………..4.30pm: clinic had just come to an end, and I was in the ward office with the chief physician and an Australian doctor, we were looking over some interesting x-rays of the clinic patients. Without warning I became aware of feeling a bit wobbly on my feet, then very wobbly. At that point the look on the face of the other two told me something was definitely going on, then the roar started to build.

The next thing I knew, everything was shaking and the sound of crashing came from everywhere. Within seconds, all three of us were dashing for the door and tumbling into the open air. Once outside, the earthquake continued and the sound of oxygen cylinders falling over resonated around the ward. People were screaming and the shaking continued.

I can’t be sure how long it went on for, but my adrenalin levels were probably the highest they have ever been.

Patients and visitors spilled onto the grass, those that could run or walk came first, then patients on beds were wheeled out of the surgical ward. Everyone looked either terrified or elated, or a combination of the two. A follow up shock hit about 5 minutes later, but was much less violent than the first.

As soon as the initial shocks had died, we tried our best to get the moveable patients to the relative safety of the outside courtyard, fearing this may be a prelude to something bigger.

Fortunately our worst fears were allayed, and over the next half hour, patients were moved back their beds and the debris was cleared up. No structural damage was visible, but one oxygen bottle discharged it’s contents in the paediatric ward, and a couple of bottles on the medical ward had their outlet valves bent.

That evening I went down to the town and harbour to try to find an internet café to send some e-mails (after the tsunami all clear, I’m not that stupid). The town was pretty much deserted, all the café’s were closed, and just a few security guards roaming the streets. I became aware of a most intoxicating smell, like the most wonderful flower garden. I had just walked past a duty free store, and peering through the window, the contents of the shelves were smashed all over the floor. The consequential perfume slick was filling the evening air.

On the harbour side, things looked unusual. The horizon looked like a new town had arisen from the ocean floor, small specks of light where open-ocean was usually dark and uninterrupted. I then realized that there were far fewer yachts in the bay. I assume the skippers had sailed into deeper water in case of another quake and risk of tsunami. In the deeper water I assume the wave would wash under them, rather than gathering into the crashing monster that would develop as it entered the shallow harbour.

Aftershocks continued almost every hour for the next 24hrs, and then became less frequent over the following few days, though there was a little shudder this morning as I sat enjoying my coffee after a swim in the harbour (Saturday). It was so slight, running for the hills would have been a little inappropriate!