Thanks, Brian.

Brian D



"Brian Combs" wrote in message
...
I returned from Sri Lanka on Monday. Yes, it has taken this long to wake
up enough from jet lag and the emotional drain of the trip to be able to
catch up on my fun groups.

The damage is every bit as bad as the TV made it out. There are boats
everywhere that are damaged or destroyed. No, they don't need designers
to help them with new hull designs. Most of the local fishermen use
something like a dugout with an outrigger. The hulls that I saw are
mostly fiberglass now although I did see a few wood hulls. The bulwarks
are stitch and tarred on. The mast is stepped to the keel and lashed in
place. The outrigger is lashed in place as well. Almost all the boats
have a small outboard. They launch through the surf, make a quick turn
and paddle to deep water then start the outboard. Most of the fishing is
done 3-5 miles off shore using nets. Some fishermen work nights and use
lights to attract the fish.

In the more devastated areas the fishermen are just now starting to return
to the sea. They had been hearing a hum from the sea at night and took
that as a warning not to go out.

Darning my travels (I went from Colombo to Batticaloa and then followed
the coastline back to Colombo) there were also large boats on the beach
with significant damage as well as some that were sunk off the beach.
Many of these boats will never be re-floated and many are not easily
repaired. Some were several hundred yards inshore.

Many of the people are trying to go about some kind of daily life but they
go to the remains of their home (if there are any remains, and in some
areas even the foundation was washed away) and just stand trying to come
to grips with their loss. In the coastal areas every body either lost a
family member or friend. Every family on the island was effected. This
is just Sri Lanka.

The other side of this is that I found the people to be open and friendly.
The fishermen took me to their boat while they readied for the launch.
They are careful and use dual fuel filters. They go over the motor
completely before they even think of going out. My only regret is that I
didn't go out with them.

I know that this is a little one sided but that is also the way I am
feeling right now.

Brian