Good number of villages along the coastal belt is Catholic and so, in the southern most tip, Kottar diocese, the villages of Fr. Thiyagu, Fr. Cyril, Fr. Vincent are affected.  Luckily not many lives are lost; heavy loss of property is reported.

One village, by name: Paramankenni (Fr. Chinnappan Sandhappan knows) where the Sacerd Heart Sisters have a convent & a primary school, is completely washed away; and in Chennai ( Madras ) city where we are, along the beach, a lot of huts & houses are completely gone, also hundreds of people lost their lives. In all, in India alone, over 6 thousand people might have died. One consolation is that no one of the families

of our Oblates have suffered any loss of life. 

Thanking you for your concern,

Pathinathan, OMI   (Delegation Superior – India)

FROM SRI LANKA:

This terrifying incident that hit Sri Lanka especially the Northern and the Eastern coast in the morning of Sunday the 26^th of December remains a nightmare. The death toll has arisen to nearly to ten thousand in the North alone now. The people in these costal areas were taken completely unaware. It was just a matter of a few seconds. Families in a bulk, especially women, children and the aged are missing in hundreds. Thousands are injured being simply drifted and twisted by the waves. Now the hospitals are overflowing with the injured and almost all those in the costal areas have lost homes and properties. The worst is the trauma of looking for the missing, identifying the dead and taking care of the remaining orphaned people.

The costal areas like Chakkoddai, Point-Pedro, Manalkadu, Chempeyampattu, Thalayady and Mullaithivu are also predominantly Catholic populated fishing villages. There are also Hindu and Muslim villages in the Trinco and Batticaloa districts. The Holy Family sisters and the priests whose residents were just along the sea were miraculously saved as they were all attending in the Church the Sunday Mass. The Sri Lankan Forces rooted in the so called High Security Zone (along the costal belt) were all uprooted some have died and many soldiers were also injured.

The volunteers especially the youth in Jaffna and are in the forefront helping and giving assistance to the needy. The Oblate Priests and the Scholastics are doing their best in the Jaffna Peninsula. Most of the people are willing and do share what they have like food items, clothes, mats and pillows. Of course there is a shortage for medicine and hospital facilities. The Oblates also have joined the other volunteer forces in transporting goods and distributing the helps to the villages.

I have never heard or seen such a catastrophe that took place within a few minutes and taken absolutely innocent lives of our people, who have gone through enormous hardships, pains and losses due to the past civil war. What we saved - many lives and properties during the two years of ceasefire have been swallowed up by the sea. The whole experience is shocking. So far Priests and Nuns who were at the costal areas also are saved miraculously but some have lost parents, brothers, sisters and relatives.

Why this has happened is an unanswered and deeply frustrating a question. Most certainly we, the Oblates will definitely get more involve in rebuilding these areas and healing the wounds of the affected, which will be our priority. I know you will get enough of official news but this is to communicate what came to my mind immediately.

Fr. A. Jeevendra Paul OMI

Provincial – Jaffna Oblates