Super Typhoon Mangkhut ripped through the enclaves off Pak Tam Road, deep in the Sai Country Park, leaving a trail of devastation but, as elsewhere in Sai Kung, bringing out community spirit in affected villages.
At Ko Tong Brookside, the hurricane force winds tore off part of a huge banyan tree which smashed onto the roof of a village house, damaging glass panels and masonry. Longer, more slender boughs smacked into neighbouring houses and engulfed a car. Miraculously, the thick summer foliage absorbed much of the impact, leaving the car with minor abrasions but all the glass intact.
Three other fallen trees blocked the village entrance but, with a tremendous show of community spirit, residents of all ages worked together with handsaws, tree-cutters and one chain saw to clear the entrance and access road.
Despite being inundated with calls for help, staff manning the Government hotline, 1823, still managed to respond to voicemails the same day. A site inspection at the village is expected later this week, to assess the many splintered and toppled trees. Disposal of the huge piles of trunks, logs and branches may take longer.
Further up the hill at Uk Tau Village, a large tree was toppled in the forest and crashed into the backyard of a recently vacated property; the crown of the tree covering the entire back wall of the three storey village house.
Across the road, the hiking path down to To Kwa Peng is a scene of total devastation, accessible only to the adventurous, prepared to clamber over fallen tree trunks, dip under hanging loops of lianas and to work out a route around the tangle of uprooted shrubs and assorted vegetation.
At the lower end of To Kwa Peng, where the path leads towards Chek Keng and Pak Tam Au, the sea had roared in, smashing the village noticeboard from its concrete base and leaving fishing boats, still tethered to their safe-haven moorings, dumped unceremoniously in the middle of the mangroves.
On Tuesday 17 September, under blue skies, and amidst all the devastation, a small herd of cows grazed on one of the few clear areas left, where the mangroves had protected the shoreline. A tranquil scene after what had been a raging tempest just two days earlier. Sai Kung life is slowly resuming its usual rhythm.
Be the first to comment