Among the victims of the earthquake which devastated the capital of Vanuatu, a Frenchman in his thirties. “A young man that everyone adored, as kind as anything,” describes Stéphane Rivier. He helped pull the body out of the rubble. He testifies.
After the 7.3 magnitude earthquake which hit Vanuatu on Tuesday December 17, emergency services are hard at work to extract victims from the rubble. With the help of volunteers. “The same evening, two women who were buried were freed”, testifies Stéphane Rivier, a Frenchman who has lived in Vanuatu for around thirty years.
Under the rubble of a building in the center of Port Vila, the capital, he also participated in removing lifeless bodies. Including that of Vincent Goiset, a French national born in Vanuatu. Stéphane Rivier knew him. “A young man that everyone adored, as kind as anything”, he describes, his voice breaking with sadness.
Stéphane Rivier helped pull victims out of the rubble, including the body of a French national he knew.
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©NC la1ère
Aged around thirty, the victim worked in renovation.
Many residents are mobilizing. We are looking for people who were on vacation here, whose family was in Nouméa.
“Solidarity in Vanuatu has always been strong”, continues, moved, Stéphane Rivier. “Many residents are mobilizing. We are looking for people who were on vacation here, whose family was in Nouméa. We help each other to collect water from those who have it.” and deal with supply problems.
Shops, water tanks, bridges, roads, part of the Port Vila hospital and the telecommunications system were damaged. Among the priorities: clearing roads to reach isolated villages, distributing drinking water and food, and providing medical care to the injured. Help arrived from New Caledonia, Australia and New Zealand.
Forty-eight hours after the earthquake, “we’re all a little on edge”, confides Stéphane Rivier. The population of the archipelago, located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, is used to earthquakes. But this one, whose epicenter was located around thirty kilometers from the capital, surprised by its intensity in a particularly urbanized area.
Stéphane Rivier indicates that he felt between 20 and 25 aftershocks. Some this Thursday, December 19.
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