Around 9pm on March 10, 2011 we heard there was a 8.9 earthquake in japan. Living in Hawaii you quickly realize that earthquakes in certain places around us cause a tsunami threat here. 8.9 is a huge quake, but pics and video hadn't been posted yet. We weren't really sure of the extent of the threat.
We turned on the news and tried to find videos online. They kept talking about how terrible it was. Having lived in Northridge for the '94 earthquake which was about a 7.0 I can only imagine what an 8.9 would be like. Nothing short of life changing.. That's for sure.
We heard it had caused a tsunami on another part of japan that was super close, but again couldn't see any pics or video just yet. The news acted like they really weren't 100% sure of how bad the tsunami would be or if there would even be one. They expected something though. They decided at 9:55pm they would sound the alarm sirens all over the island.. This was in hopes that people who didn't watch TV or just hadn't heard that they would check some TV or radio before they went to bed and in evacuations zones they could get out early. The tsunami was expected at 3am. The alarms went off and right then the mood changed.
Although we were at sea level and only about a half mile inland we weren't sure what to do. We have had tsunami warnings before.. But nothing happened. A part of me wants to say nothings gonna happen again. We wont get hit by a major tsunami.. We won't die.. That can't happen...
We decided to set an alarm around 2am, an hour before it is supposed to hit, and go to sleep. My cousin was visiting from Washigton and I sent him a text letting him know he was safe at my house and on high enough ground and not to be scared by the sirens. He wrote me back that his girlfriends brother insisted they evacuate and go to his place immediately. Then the phone lines went out. No more contact at that point.
Off to sleep we went.
At 1am we wake up and decide to check the news. The tsunami had just hit midway atoll, which is about half the distance between Hawaii and japan, but not on the middle, off to the side. It hit there with 8 foot waves. That made this all seem real. 8 foot waves of a tsunami are not the fun, breaking, barreling, surfing waves we all love... It's a wall of water, traveling towards us at about 500miles per hour and 8 feet of that wall are above sea level. The rest is below. It hits land at 500 mph.. And pushes water onto land with such intesity, only a few inches of the water can knock you off your feet. Likely to be followed by 2-3 more huge waves.
This was scary. We decided to evacuate to my house and just at that time the fire department was in front of our house telling us to leave immediately. My boyfriend and I got into his truck and his brother in his car following and off we went to my safe house to go back to sleep because we were oh so tired!
Only a mile down the road, the road was closed. We had to circle back to Kuliouou valley and drive as far up as we could and park. And wait.
It was a particularly cold night for Hawaii. And it was rainy. We hadn't brought much thinking we would be safe and have everything we needed at my place. I used 3 dirty towels to attempt to keep warm while I wiggled around in the front seat of a small truck. Kona laid in the back which had a camper over it, but you couldn't close it so It was too cold to me back there. Jeremy slept in his comfy car, knowing no matter what happened he would have to be at work ar 6:30 am.. So he was going to get all the sleep he could!
Radio didn't work very well and the stations we got were talking about a lot of crap and dumb call in questions.
Waiting and waiting, wondering what's going on. What should we do. What's gonna happen. Cold and tired and so badly just wanting to be in bed!
Finally it was almost 3am... It had only been about an hour and a half but it felt like days I was sitting in the car. 3am... We can't see or hear anything so we are just wondering what to do. Radio and Facebook posts were saying the water was receding at a very rapid rate to a very low tide, which was said to be lower than they could test for. Reef was exposed, marinas draining out.. Weird things happening.
We still questioned going back home.. This was our sleepiness talking of course. If the fire department told us to leave then we should leave. Because if something did happen and we needed help not only are we going to look stupid for not listening, but now they may have to put themselves in danger to save us. That would be embarrassing. So we stayed put. Kept hearing the water was receding and rising and receding and rising.. But no major damage or anything. Things seemed to be settling down and around 4:45am we decided to head back home.
Still a very weird silence everywhere. But we got home and were asleep before our heads hit the pillows.
We woke up at 8am and turned on the news and started contacting family an friends. Seemed like we were in the clear. Apparently some damage to big island. Some harbors and marinas but nothing major, nothing even remotely close to japan. And no casualties.
Kona and I were supposed to work that day but really weren't sure what to do. Schools closed, businesses were still closed, the island was still in shock and fearful. But it was a beautifully sunny day.. First day in a while with sunny skies.
We headed over towards sandys.. And it was closed. Makapu'u.. Closed. All beaches.. Closed. Water looked pretty dirty in Maunalua Bay. And the tide was strangely low. We went to go look for some whales at Halona blowhole and just observe. There was a painful sad energy in the air. Tour buses were pulling though there like any other day. Tourists making a pit stop to see the blowhole, but the air was full of sorrow. Hawaii is a main vacation spot for Japanese.. We quickly realized how they might be feeling. They are here on vacation in paradise.. While their friends and family are suffering, hurt, missing, or worse. Their own homes might be ruined.. But there's nothing they can do. Flights aren't going back there yet.. Phones probably don't work. They aren't going to sit in their hotel and sulk or wait.. So they go on with their scheduled day.. But with an aura of pain and sadness that spreads to us all.
We decide to grab some lunch and then decide what to do with our day ...which was go for a swim. A dip in the ocean is like nothing else. Wash away your pain and sorrows and makes you feel good and rejuvenated. We went down to cockroach cove and there were quite a few people there, families and kids who were off school.. playing in the water almost like nothing happened. Tide looked extra low but we jumped in anyways. Within 5 min the tide had rose about 5 feet and changed the whole look of the beach and where the waves were breaking an everything. It was so weird I just stood back and watched while Kona was body surfing. He would catch a few waves and then in minutes they would be breaking 10 feet up on the beach. Then minutes later back by him. I'm no water or tide expert but I knew this wasn't normal. We didn't stay long. Everything felt strange.
We decided we wanted to take the rest of the day to relax and to be thankful for what didn't happen here and that we were all safe and OK. Thinking of all the lives affected in japan.. We are so lucky. Also after a long night a nap was needed. Sleep away this sad day.
We woke up and decided to go watch the sunset at the beach park. Immediately noticing the rough water and waves in places that never had waves before. The tide was still rising. Quickly. There was seaweed, coral and junk all over the park that had been brought up by the ocean the night before. It didn't belong there and just showed that the ocean can do crazy things if she wants to. She's in control, not us. A few minutes later we noticed calm water, reef showing and a sandbar. The tide was quickly going out. For the next hour this is what it did. Drastically changing every few minutes, while we prepped fronds, talked story with Kona's sister and met some nice people around the beach. The vibe of the day finally started to change. Families togethers, met a young boy interested in the art of weaving and traded with him some help to clean up our rubbish for a coconut bowl that will last him a life time, and met a sweet old lady and her dog who frequent this beach park for their daily outings :)
The day ended with such an appreciation for life.. And more particularly, our own lives. We are beyond lucky to have all that we have. We have enough. Everybody is always wanting more, but we all have enough. Family, friends, love and life. What else could you need?
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