The Rotary Club of Patong Beach - Tsunami Relief Trip Report

Report Date:   7 March 2005

Tsunami Relief Trip to:   Baan Pak Trium (BPT) and North Andaman Tsunami Relief (NATR)

Rotary Members on Trip:   Bradley Kenny

Dates of Trip:   5-6 March 2005

Reason for Trip:   At BPT - Deliver Food & Subsistence Money, Start Community Water System Water Well, get an update on Boat Project, and Announce Rotary Patong will Fund 23 Homes for BPT.   At NATR, update of their activities and possible Rotary Water Projects.

Trip Report:   Departed Phuket on 5 March 2005 around 12:00 noon, arrived to BPT at 3:15 PM.  

Met with BPT elders and committee on several issues, and told them of our plans to fund entirely their houses under conditions as follows: 1) we get all loan information so that we can pay off the loans received to fund their houses direct, 2) we get receipts for all other building materials and labor needed to build the homes.

They wanted me to attend the evening meeting and announce to the village this arraignment.  

I also met with several “Farang” organizations that were on site assisting with man-power in the house construction.  

Global Quest had around 16 USA senior high students working at the village for a 2 week period.   The Program Leader and Teacher is Jessica Reilly whom was working for GQ in Chaing Rai and was transferred to south of Thailand after the Tsunami.   A great group of people, very energetic, and a great pleasure for the villagers.     When I noted they seemed to be doing the HEAVY labor like digging out bamboo roots for house footings; the students all responded that they requested the hardest work!   Jessica is fluent in Thai and was also a great translator.   They have some money collected from back in the USA in which they want to go to the village.   Once I explained our activities, I suggested BPT didn't need any more direct funds and if they wanted they could join us as our partner with what ever funds they wanted given direct to us at the Rotary Club of Patong Beach, for BPT.

Complete contact info for Global Quest

Jessica Reilly – Program Leader and Teacher

82 Moo2, Tambon Rimkok

Amphur Muang, Chaing Rai 57100

E-Mail: jreilly@gquest.com

Web Site: htpp://www.gquest.com

A second group came through the Tsunami Volunteer Center in Khow Lak, they were mostly American also with 2 EU residents, totaled 10 all together.   They were living in tents with the villagers on site.   Their leader was Jonathan Morris from Alabama, USA, whom was working as a volunteer through the Mirror Foundation with the Hill Tribes in the North of Thailand.   He came to the south shortly after the Tsunami as an interpreter and also speaks fluent Thai.   

John is an expert in finding secondary income for the hill tribes in the north.   He wants to put together a program for tourists to visit BPT and stay overnight with the villagers and go out on an evening fishing trip with them.   His group tried the fishing trip that night pm a trial bases.   I told John we would take a look at this and assist as needed.   The next day all seemed to enjoy the fishing trip except they didn't catch much!

Contact info for Jonathan Morris:

Jonathan (John) Morris – Mirror Foundation Program Leader

Tel: 01-6022401

E-Mail: jsmorris@alum.mit.edu

Web Site: http://www.hilltribe.org

I stayed at the house construction site till 6PM taking photos, and giving out the 100 or so pineapples I bought at the Sarasin Bridge on the way for Baht 400.   They seemed to love the idea of “Phuket” pineapples!  

Al the villagers were their typical “glad to see my Rotary shirt” selves.   It had been 2 weeks since I last visited and it seems to me they were quite a bit more upbeat then normal, I do think the shock and trauma from the Tsunami is beginning to wear off!

The house building continues at a very good pace.   All 23 houses are started with 2 finished and being lived in.   Another 6-7 will be finished soon also.   With our commitment to fund the houses, they want to try to finish by the end of March, at least to a point where they can get out of the tents and move in to the houses.   The construction for the houses should be accelerated so that they all can move in as soon as possible.   We need to assure them with timely payments as needed for the houses.

It rained while I was there and the villagers are very apprehensive about the rainy season starting while they are in the tents.   They scurried to cover the tent areas with make shift plastic and the rain water run-off through the tent area is also a problem.   Although, rain is one of the most important natural environmental occurrence needed in all of the Tsunami hit areas,   fresh water is need to wash away the salt for vegetation to start to re-grow and to rinse out sea water contaminated water wells, so it is badly needed and a blessing.

I was also informed that Mrs. Merliese Fritz (06-1493010) has just visited them from the Pattaya Rotary Club.  

I returned for their weekly meeting (they also have nightly meetings but the week long main meetings is Saturday), to announce to all our commitment to pay for all 23 of their houses.   And to hand over the Baht 69,000 for the second of three months food we committed to earlier and Baht 48,000 for the construction of the new village water well.   Many people at the meeting for the word got out about our commitment to their houses, and a general community sigh of relive when I officially announced it to them all.

After the meeting at BPT, I met Bodhi and his staff at the North Andaman Tsunami Relief (NATR) organization office in Kuraburi, on my way back to the Kuraburi Greenville Resort.   I discussed several water related projects my company is assisting them on and other interesting projects they are pursuing.  

They invited me to a going away party for one of their Thai translators, which conveniently enough was at the Greenville Resort.   After allot of hard work this group of mostly American (one Britt also) volunteers wanted and needed to have a party ad let lose, which they did!   I learnt that the volunteer leaving (Khun Duke) is living in Bangkok but originally was from the Bak-Jok area and had lost his mother and several other family members in the Tsunami, so it was a very emotional going away party to say the least!  

The next day I returned to BPT and met with Khun Chet and officially gave BPT the funds listed above and took some additional pictures.   We also discussed in details the water system to be installed by Rotary Patong/ESP Corporation and the current configuration for waste water treatment they had in mind and what we may be ale to offer for environmental improvements.  

Another subject discussed was our boat rebuilding project.   He showed me a delivery order for wood for repairs amounting to Baht 75,576.   Their total order for wood was Baht 96,291, with the difference on back order due to be delivered this week.   So they request that Jeroen transfer this amount or visit them with this amount.

On the way back to Phuket, I did stop also at the Tsunami Volunteer Center in Khaw Lak and got paper work on requests for assistance in the event we might want some for BPT in the future.

Contact info for Tsunami Volunteer Center

The Mirror Foundation Phang Nga

Office : Khawlak Nature Resort

26/10 Moo 7 Tumbon Kauk Kak, Takuapa, Phang Nga 82190  

Tel: 01-0794510, 09-8826187

E-Mail: info@tsunamivolunteer.net

Web Site: http://www. tsunamivolunteer.net

As a note to other visiting Rotarians, there is a break out of Dengue Fever in the Kuraburi area (as is the case with Phuket also) and care must be taken to protect yourself with mosquito repellant, for they were bad.   The local health department sent a fogger and sprayer to attempt to lower this risk in the BPT village area while I was there Sunday.   Please reference :    http://www.phuket-health-travel.com/articles/dengue.htm , for more information.

Rtn. Bradley Kenny