From Solomon Islands tsunami survivor to humanitarian: Ricky’s story
Above: Ricky Pana. Photo: Ernest Ta’asi/Oxfam
Ricky Pana supports Solomon Islands communities to be better prepared for disasters after his own harrowing experience in the 2007 Earthquake and Tsunami. Here, Ricky shares his story.
Words by Ernest Ta’asi, Oxfam in the Pacific
It was a beautiful sunny Monday morning.
Above: Youths in Titiana play on the volleyball court in 2021. Photo: Ivan Utahenua/Oxfam
No school today! Ricky smiled at the thought. The 16-year-old got out of bed.
The time was 7:15am.
It was school holidays. A whole week ahead of catching up with friends, volleyball and of course, the ocean.
Above: Gizo Island, which hosts the capital of the Western Province. Photo: Ivan Utahenua/Oxfam
Ricky was back in his home village Titiana, stretched along the white sandy outskirts of Gizo – the Western Province capital – in Solomon Islands, in the comfort of his parents’ home and away from boarding school where he had spent the last three months.
The village was already buzzing with life.
Music could be heard nearby from a group of girls practising their tamure dance routine.
The volleyball court, just across from Ricky’s house, was already set up and a few kids were already playing.
Ricky had house chores to do before he could go join the kids to play. He carried a bucket of pig feed to their piggery farm, fenced over the breaking waves of the ocean.
He wanted to make the most of the short school break before returning to the harsh life of boarding school.
It was the Easter holiday.
A holiday that changed Ricky’s life forever.
The date was April 2, 2007.
Ricky first felt the ground beneath him move slowly. Then it shook rapidly.
The shaking did not stop and seemed to gain momentum. Ricky by then knew this was no ordinary earthquake and he quickly ran to a clear area away from trees and buildings.
He could hear houses falling apart, people shouting in panic and the pounding footsteps of people fleeing their homes.
The shaking lasted for more than a minute.
A record 8.1 magnitude earthquake struck 40 kilometres off Gizo and triggered tsunamis that wiped out 13 villages along the coasts of Gizo, Ranongga and Simbo. Photo: Andrew Meyers/US Navy
People slowly emerged from their hiding spots and murmurs of disbelief could be heard across the village.
Then there was shouting, and everyone was pointing toward the ocean.
Ricky, whose home is located by the seaside, looked on.
There was an unusual low tide.
In the distance, a small wave could be seen breaking, accompanied by an unfamiliar sound of rushing water.
Above: Ricky’s home village Titiana in the present day, after being rebuilt. Photo: Ivan Utahenua/Oxfam
Ricky, like many baffled by the sudden low tide, curiously watched the incoming wave grow bigger. By the time they realised the horror that was about to unfold, it was too late to run.
Ricky turned to move but was instantly underwater.
He was hammered against the wall of his house and felt the force of the ocean mercilessly beat him against the wall as he grabbed on to a tree root for support.
Almost a minute passed, Ricky still underwater fighting for his life. Then he felt the wave recede and was soon gasping for air.
The sea level was knee high.
Ricky, shaken but unaware of any injury, got up and tried to get away from the seaside. After stumbling a few steps forward, he was swept off his feet and underwater again, this time with nothing to hold on to.
Above: Ricky sharing his story in Auki during a three-day training on Emergency Response with the Malaita Provincial Disaster Office in May 2021. Photo: Ernest Ta’asi/Oxfam
Back in 2021, an eerie silence echoed through the room.
Ricky Pana, now 30 and a humanitarian worker for Oxfam, paused as he tried to recollect his harrowing experience.
Standing before a room full of awestruck listeners, Ricky continued.
“I remember when I went up for air after the second wave hit, I looked to my left and I saw our house coming down. It was an unbelievable sight,” Ricky recalled.
“I was very lucky that the direction the wave had taken me through was a footpath and it didn’t have that many trees or houses in the way.”
On that day, a record 8.1 magnitude earthquake struck 40 kilometres off Gizo and triggered a tsunami that wiped out more than thirteen villages along the coasts of Gizo, Simbo and Ranongga in Western Province and some parts of neighbouring Choiseul Province.
Waves were reported up to 12 metres in height.
Fifty-two lives were lost, hundreds more injured and thousands left homeless.
Titiana village suffered the highest casualties, accounting for almost half of the total death toll, including Ricky’s one-year-old baby niece.
Above: The Emergency Response Training was attended by 25 community leaders from five regions across Malaita. Photo: Ernest Ta’asi/Oxfam
Ricky shared his story in Auki, Malaita, during a three-day long Emergency Response Training (ERT) workshop in May 2021.
The training was conducted by the Malaita Provincial Disaster Office with the support of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP) Disaster READY Program through Oxfam in the Pacific.
Twenty-five community leaders from five regions across Malaita were certified in ERT, with the aim of achieving better response coordination between local communities and disaster authorities in the event of a disaster.
According to the Malaita Provincial Disaster Officer, Pearson Simi, the greatest challenge they face are assessments of damage and needs after a disaster, which can take a prolonged period before actual relief can be delivered.
Above: The Emergency Response Training gives communities capacity to do their own assessments to help disaster authorities to respond swiftly. Pictured is a participant receiving her certificate from Malaita Provincial Disaster Officer, Pearson Simi. Photo: Ernest Ta’asi/OXFAM
The ERT hopes to bridge this gap by teaching communities how to do their own assessments to allow a swift response.
After being on the receiving end of a major disaster, Ricky is now using his past experiences to lead humanitarian responses from the other side.
He joined Oxfam’s humanitarian team over a year ago and takes charge of the organisation’s Community-Based Disaster Risk Reduction (CBDRR) program activities in 15 communities across Guadalcanal, Malaita and Temotu provinces.
The program is funded by the Australian Government through the Disaster READY program and is delivered through Oxfam and its local partners.
In Solomon Islands, Disaster READY focuses on improving disaster preparedness, response and recovery through community-based disaster risk management and engagement with local disaster management authorities.
The ERT is a key ingredient to achieving disaster resilience at the community level, or CBDRR, Ricky explains.
Above: Ricky, far right, now a humanitarian worker for Oxfam, says his experience in the 2007 Earthquake and Tsunami has helped him to reach out to communities and inspire them in community-based disaster preparedness. Photo: Ernest Ta’asi/OXFAM
Ricky believes the outcome of the 2007 Earthquake and Tsunami would have been different and many lives would have been saved if communities had access to the CBDRR program.
“Obviously at that time people were not aware of the adverse impacts of earthquakes that can trigger a tsunami,” Ricky said of the event, which eventually led to a rigorous nationwide tsunami awareness campaign.
“There were no alert systems, no information and awareness, no active engagement in identification and analysis of risk, no structure and mechanism set up in relation to disaster preparedness programs in the community.
“These are all captured in the CBDRR program,” Ricky explained.
He said joining Oxfam as the AHP Disaster READY Project Officer has provided him with the understanding to reflect and ensure that his home is better prepared for any future disasters.
“To be frank, my experience has pushed me a lot to where I am at Oxfam today.
“Reflecting back to that Easter holiday 14 years ago, things should not have happened the way they did. Of course, I will use my learnings from my job to help my community prepare ourselves so that we do not have to suffer like that again.”
Disaster READY has supported Oxfam’s CBDRR work since 2017, with a focus on inclusion to ensure that people with disabilities, women, children, and other vulnerable groups are involved in disaster planning and that their needs are being met.
AHP NGOs leading Disaster READY work in the Solomon Islands include Oxfam, World Vision, Caritas/CAN DO, CARE, Live & Learn and Plan International. Activities are being implemented with communities and local governments in all provinces across Solomon Islands.