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Actress and psychologist Pamela Stephenson described the earthquake in Samoa as scary as hell and the resulting devastation as "walking into a terrible dream".
New Zealand-born Stephenson, who is married to Scottish comedian Billy Connolly and has been staying in central Samoa, said yesterday that she was unharmed after the quake hit despite her hilltop house vibrating violently.
Writing in the British Guardian newspaper, she said destruction along the seafront from the resulting tsunami was immense, with villages uprooted.
Stephenson said a friend had been killed while trying to escape the giant waves.
"Huge piles of debris lay everywhere; it was clear the wave had whacked every structure with incredible might," she said.
"Cars teetered where they had been thrown, on top of rubble from collapsed dwellings. Fridges and air conditioners floated in the sea.
"I looked along the bay and saw that a well-known jetty was missing. So were villages that once lined the shore.
"I saw a thatched fale surrounded by three policemen and some villagers.
"A woman was lying inside and someone was trying to revive her."
Stephenson, who writes on sex therapy for the newspaper, also paid tribute to the resilience of the Samoans.
"Many are homeless, but the extended family system means they will stay with relatives in other villages. Samoans are extraordinary people, and their resilience is evident."
- NZPA
How you can help
Pacific Cooperation Foundation
Deposits can be made at at any Westpac branch. All the money raised will go to the Samoan Government
Red Cross
- Make a secure online donation at redcross.org.nz
- Send cheques to the Samoan Red Cross Fund, PO Box 12140, Thorndon, Wellington 6144
- Call 0900 31 100 to make an automatic $20 donation
- Make a donation at any NZ Red Cross office
ANZ bank
Make a donation at any ANZ bank branch, or donate directly to the ANZ appeal account: 01 1839 0143546 00
Oxfam
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Oxfam.org.nz
- Phone 0800 400 666 or make an automatic $20 donation by calling 0900 600 20
