DIOCESE OF AITAPE CHURCH BUILDING PROGRAM

	News report No. 8 November 2002 Diocese of Aitape P O Box 179 Aitape Sandaun Province Papua New Guinea Ph +675 8572046 fax +675 8572056
Aitape Haus Lotu Projects

Introduction:

This is the eighth report from the Diocese of Aitape for the month of November about the project to build eleven new permanent churches to replace those destroyed by the Aitape Tsunami disaster of July 1998. Our previous seven reports have site visit photos and information about all the sub parishes in Malol, Arop, Sissano and Barupu areas, the July 17 anniversary of the Tsunami disaster, and a description of the walkabout saw. This report covers work during the month of November.

Foundation works start at Amu Church

This month was special because it marked the start of work on site for the first church. It was decided that rather than use a formal contract for the foundations, to enter into an hourly rate agreement with an experienced supervisor (Peter) and a construction team of labourers from Amu itself. In the photo Peter and the workers stand next to a reinforced steel cage which when concreted will support one of the steel columns for the church. These cages are all interconnected with steel reinforced concrete ground beams to tie the structure together at ground level. The level will be built up with gravels delivered to site last month, and then a concrete floor poured over the top. There are 28 of these cages in the church.

Supervisor Peter and his crew of Amu workers in the first week of the work.

Giants of the Amu forest yield their timber for the Amu Church

Robin, who is one of the walkabout supervisors sits atop one of the trees felled for the project. This tree is over one metre in diameter. Behind him are some of the walkabout saw helpers from Amu and others from the nearby village. Altogether there will be 70 cubic metres of timber cut for the project at Amu. There are two supervisors and six helpers from Amu working with the walkabout saw to supply cut timber.

Steel posts for the next stage of the Amu Church

In the Aitape Mission workshop, this is the crew of two welders Chris and Colin with their helper Benson, seen here with some of the steel church posts for the Amu church. They have completed all of the foundation cages, steel bars and stirrups, and are now working on the next stage which is the steel posts and brackets to join the timber rafters. These posts will sit on the foundation pads now under construction at Amu.

Other Sites:

During November, a visit was made by speedboat to Olbrum and Wuipom in the Sissano area. At Wuipom, (see photo) the people have been dredging gravel from the river by hand and carrying it to the church site. Work progresses when the water level is low. Four different parish teams are involved in the work. At Olbrum the land agreement has now been finalised, and so during a visit to the site, some survey shots were taken to help with the design of the proposed church there. The site is elevated with only a limited flat area for the building platform. A visit was also made to neighbouring Rainbrum to talk to the locals about gravel.