L/C Sea Mercy (Landing Craft) Arrives in the Lau Group!

L/C SEA MERCY

"Sea Mercy" (our dedicated disaster recovery Landing Craft) arrived in the Northern Lau Group of Fiji to begin a month long Emergency Water Generation program that will provide over 100,000+ liters of clean drinking water for the number of "at risk" remote island villages following Cyclone Winston. 

Although some water catchment (roofs, guttering and water storage tanks) have been rebuilt or repaired, because Fiji is currently into it's "dry season" (until October), there has been little or no rain to help replenish their drinking water.

Captain Geoff Deutschmann

Captained by Geoff Deutschmann, L/C Sea Mercy was designed not only as a heavy aid transport, but was also specially designed to carry a 10,000 liter/day desalination unit (a Spectra LB2800) to meet the crucial water needs of the remote island villages following a natural disaster. With it's shallow draft, yet 5 ton carrying capacity, it can slip through almost any reef and anchor in a remote lagoon to deliver aid. Carrying over 400 meters of water delivery hose (and hose floats) on-board, it can deliver water to almost any village water storage tank. The water produced is temporarily stored on the Landing Craft before being pumped to the waiting village.

L/C Sea Mercy spent the months of June and July in the Lomaiviti Group generating water (50,000 liters) and transporting rebuilding materials and aid for the Makogai School project and the Naigani Village rebuilding project.

One of 8 concrete water tanks being refilled by Sea Mercy on the remote island of Batiki (Naigani Village). With the buildings damaged or destroyed (roofs and guttering), there is no was to collect drinking water for the village until they are rebuilt and the raining season returns in October.

When the water was restored to the village, the people were able to return to help rebuild their village (they had relocated 3 kilometers away to Manuku village).

Traveling almost 200 miles across open ocean to reach the Lau Group, it will refill the storage tanks there before heading to Taveuni to help offset the fresh water needs in the villages on the southern side of the island.

The Sea Mercy Quad/Trailer Program Is a Huge Success! by Richard Hackett

As we see with any purchase decision, there were some doubts about certain aspects of the Sea Bridge program regarding value and needs. The purchase of the used Quad and trailer was one of them. After our first stop in Makogai and the School Rebuilding project there, we immediately saw the value.

The village and school sits 1/3 of a mile from the beach (1/2 kilometer) and with over 25 tons of lumber, poles, aluminum sheeting, concrete and paint coming, imagine having to carry each item by hand to the building location?

Every time the Landing Craft would bring a load of materials, the volunteers and villagers would smile and tell us over and over again, "thank you for the quad and trailer" (I know my back was happy for it).

We will be wrapping up the Landing Craft deliveries this week and will pull the quad and trailer back to Port Denarau for servicing and reassignment. Thank you Cobra boats for the specially designed trailer and the quad to pull it.

Maiden Voyage of the Landing Craft "Sea Mercy" : Nadi to Makogai to Batiki

The trip delivering the Landing Craft and supplies from Nadi to Makogai Island was an adventure to say the least. Some incredible sights going around the northern part of Viti Levu and into the Lomaiviti area. 

The Landing Craft "Sea Mercy" brought all of us safely to Makogai into the welcoming arms (and bunks) of the Sea Mercy fleet stationed in Makogai. Our sincere thanks for the support and love shown by the captains and crew there and for Captain Geoff for delivering us.

There was something special about motoring into a remote island lagoon and seeing six vessels flying Sea Mercy flags from their masts.

Construction In Naigani Village on Batiki Is Going Fantastic! by Kelli Vidiuk

<via Facebook: Sea Mercy Fiji - Cyclone Winston>

Construction in Naigani is going fantastic! Building materials have arrived and everyone in the village has been working extra hard.

We have completed the draining, cleaning and reconstruction of the well allowing Naigani to have fresh clean water to bath in. 

Two new roofing structures have been built and a third will be completed tomorrow, thanks to the donation of timbers and roofing tin.

A temporary shower and shower room has been constructed and hung up, thanks to some ingenious ideas!!

Everyone is constantly working to clear debris. It's being broken up, buried and forgot about and Naigani is starting to look like a village again.

With the arrival of the Sea Mercy barge on Tuesday, the water maker has been going strong all day and pumping fresh water into the village. So far filling one 10,000 Liter tank!

Roofs and water have been the main focus and slowly the villagers are moving back into Naigani. It's outstanding how much everyone here has accomplished! 

Batiki Island (Naigani Village) Project, Lomaiviti Group, Fiji

There are so many devastated islands in Fiji following Cyclone Winston and unfortunately Sea Mercy's resources are limited to addressing only a few communities at a time. As a result, we have sent teams to understand the needs and have selected projects that are based on highest needs and access to outside assistance (government or other). 

We selected Naigani village for one of our recovery & rebuilding projects for June. The people of Naigani lost everything except their church and they cannot move back home (living on the far side of the island) until water and food production can be restored.

If the 200+ kmp winds were not enough of a destructive force, a 4 meter high wall of sea water pushed by the storm roared through the village taking down every home and community building. It washed away not only the broken walls and roofs of the homes, but every personal item and memory the villagers had. What they had left was what they were wearing as they fled the wall of water into the hills.

Since Winston's destruction, Sea Mercy has delivered food, shelter, water and medical care to the villagers living here. We are sending a team on June 11th to help rebuild the homes, establish clean drinking water facilities, sanitation projects, and replant the farms and gardens they need to survive and thrive again.

Please keep the people of Naigani, our volunteers and captains, and the vessels serving these communities in your thoughts and prayers.

Sea Mercy

June 1st Launch for Sea Bridge Remote Island Recovery and Rebuilding Program

June 1st is the official launch date of our Sea Bridge Remote Island Recovery and Rebuilding Program and activity in Fiji has reached high gear.

The next wave of Sea Mercy's Disaster Recovery Fleet has just passed Minerva Reef south of Fiji and is set to arrive in Vanuabalavu, Fiji on May 25th. They have had light winds and calms seas for most of their journey along with some rain showers. You can continue to follow their progress at Yachts-In-Transits . Jonathan and Donna Robinson are leading the fleet so look for CHEZ NOUS under "Boat Updates". 

Our new landing craft should be completed around the time the fleet arrives and will help immensely with the recovery efforts. Another huge "THANK YOU" to our donor and to Cobra Boats for all their hard work!! We are still looking for the perfect name for this vessel and you can submit your suggestions by commenting on this post. 

Our first two large projects are currently being organized and are in need of funding and volunteers. Please visit the links below to read about the details of the projects and help spread the word.

Makogai School Rebuilding Project

Batiki Island Rebuilding Projects

Sea Mercy Solar Watermaker Install #1 - Batiki Island

With the larger vessels bringing water-making support to the bigger remote islands (i.e. Koro, population 3,000+), Sea Mercy is focusing on the smaller islands that are often far down that priority list for assistance. Batiki, population 300+, is one of the first remote islands that Sea Mercy has sent one of our solar watermakers to assist. This will free up vessels to from delivering water, to assisting in the recovery and rebuilding of these remote islands.

Below are a few pictures of the initial setup to test the unit and to train the local villagers how to maintain the unit, clean the filters, keeping the intake lines safe and secure, and the solar panels and batteries protected.

This solar unit (with battery storage to keep it running through the night) will produce over 1,000 liters of clean drinking water a day and help offset the risk of disease and devastation from waterborne illnesses.

We currently have 7 solar desalination units left, one of those is on its way to Makogai Island for install. There are 40+ remote villages that are in need of clean water assistance, so any assistance you can provide to help us expand our water making capacity would be greatly appreciated.

You can donate using the PayPal link on this page.

Initial solar and desalination training for the islanders.

No fossil fuels needed and there is plenty of sun in Fiji.

Keeping the water intake hose visible, elevated and safe from damage is vital.

Keeping the big stuff away from the intake pump and filters is vital to its success and longevity

First fruits of their labor!
 Tom Hanks may have yelled "I have made Fire" in the movie Castaway,
 but "we have made water" sounds even better right now. :) smile emoticon

Water Emergency - Solar Water Desalination Unit Preparation!

On most remote islands, over 90% of fresh drinking water comes from water catchment (rain flowing off the roof of homes, into gutters, and into water storage tanks). With the majority of the homes and roofs damaged or destroyed, islanders are currently forced to drink potentially contaminated drinking water from runoff ponds or pools. With the dry season quickly approaching (April through October) and without adequate water catchment and storage capacity, the risk of dehydration and waterborne illnesses on these remote islands will be very high.

To address that growing concern, Sea Mercy has currently secured and retrofitting 7 desalination units to run on Solar power. We will deliver them and additional storage tanks to the most at risk remote island communities at the earliest opportunity. Each unit can produce over 1,000 liters of clean drinking water a day, giving us the additional time needed to rebuild the water catchment capacity of each village.

Our thanks to Jess & Sam at Kaleva Yachts and their supporters for helping us meet this incredible need. We already have one unit heading out to Batiki on Shine and these units are going to make a massive difference.

Great Work On Batiki From S/V Shine

Great work by the team of Jeff and Patrick on S/V Shine who welded and repaired this tank on Batiki before setting up a rain catchment system - way to go guys!!!

Now they are heading out with a watermaker to build a solar system to operate it and do the full installation.

SEA MERCY UPDATE: 1st March by Susan Skeggs

S/Y Outsider returned for resupplying to Elllington Wharf where Sea Mercy restocked them with hardware and building supplies. The mission objective for builder Ian is to work with the Makogai Island village to become self-sufficient for their water again by installing new guttering and providing a means of water catchment when the rain does come. Another one of the Sea Mercy fleet are waiting for spare parts then heading to Makogai to sit on anchor making water for the village.

Sea Mercy had been receiving reports about villages that, as of today, have still not received any support. A chartered seaplane plus four Government officials identified that there are three Northern Ra coastal villages that are still completely cut off and have received no assistance.

S/Y Zazoo – Juan, our charismatic Brazilian, has been chomping at the bit to get out and help wherever he can. A fully laden Zazoo left Denarau today heading for Ellington Wharf and will be directed to supply those coastal Northern Ra villages.

In the same assessment flight, a group of interior hinterland villages were identified as being unvisited. Sea Mercy are working closely with Govt, Higgins (who are doing an AMAZING job clearing roads!) and Commissioner Western to supply these villages tomorrow.

S/Y Shine – Shine had a successful trip from Makogai to Batiki and were met with tears of joy when they offloaded much needed supplies. Lauren our floating nurse met with local village health workers and assisted them in the assessment of the general health of the village. Again water is a huge issue for Batiki, and until water collection and storage solutions are found in Nagani the villagers cannot rebuild or return so have to remain hosted by Monoku village. Shine dropped off additional medical supplies to the hospital in Levuka before heading to the mainland to pick up Shelter Boxes for Batiki.

The Nai’a has just departed for Tavenui this evening and has been loaded up with water purification tools, tents, shelter boxes and solar lights. Nigel has been working closely with RNZAF and was able to facilitate the Sea Mercy consignment which took up nearly 7 tonnes of the 8 tonne manifest! Temporary, solid accommodation in the form of robust tents are a key priority which will allow the rebuilding of stronger more structurally sound buildings. With Australia and NZ navy support arriving, Sea Mercy’s first response phase is drawing to an end. Now we are focusing on working with villages and helping them rebuild to become self-sufficient again.

Once again – thank you everyone who has donated to the Sea Mercy Fiji cause. The money and goods you donate are going directly to those who so desperately need it throughout Fiji. For all our amazing volunteers, those on our fleet of vessels and those busily organizing our immaculate (but incredibly hot) warehouse – vinaka vaka levu. None of our amazing achievements would be possible without you.

SEA MERCY UPDATE - 27th FEB by Susan Skeggs

Every time I open Facebook my heart swells with pride and love for the amazing things that people are doing to help other Fijians out.  Vinaka everyone for acting and living the love.

Quick update on what Sea Mercy has been up to yesterday:

Makogai Island – Lomaviti Group:  All the villagers are healthy, safe, well and morale is good given the loss and damage they sustained.  Water is still their biggest challenge.  Sea Mercy has delivered additional hand held water storage containers and has them in building catchment in the hope it will rain soon.  Vessels are making water for the village.

Batiki Island – Lomaviti Group: NDMO tasked Batiki to Sea Mercy because of the narrow channel access which makes it impossible for large vessels to service it.  The Sea Mercy fleet will do a dawn departure from Makogai 23 nm away in hope that the conditions will allow them to drop off of well needed supplies.

Remote villages – Ra District: Following Sea Mercy’s success in accessing remote villages, Commissioner Western asked for our assistance in delivering supplies to four additional villages that are very hard to access.  Within 45 minutes of receiving this request,

SEA MERCY UPDATE: 26th February 2016 from Susan Skeggs

Today Sea Mercy again changed lives!  In conjunction with Rotary, the Red Cross, and representatives from the DO Lautoka,  Sea Mercy were the first outside support to reach Tikina Bureiwai in the Ra District.  They have 150 people in a cluster of 4-5 villages, including a primary and a pre-school.  Nearby is the Tikina Kavula and the Namarai Station that shelters 2 additional villages which were also supplied.   Bureiwai not only had a direct hit by Winston on Saturday but almost immediately also got hit by a 1 ½ m tidal surge through their village sweeping any of their salvageable belongings out to sea. Sea Mercy has been their only avenue of support and we supplied, food, clothing, medication and basic building supplies.  One of our volunteers said “Fijian’s are very resilient, but these people, children and babies were in desperate need of help and so grateful when we finally arrived today”. 

In another feel great story – last night the guests and crew of the Nai’a continued to do their amazing work – after working all they possibly could in the 6.5 hours of light left in the day they were on the island, the Nai’a team went to depart Makogai to rest and recover back to their