Midnight Monday 13 February 2023 I was doing art in my lounge while my wife was sleeping when I received a whatsapp message from my brother-in-law living in Wellington, Western Cape, South Africa. I was shocked and intrigued at the same time. Being a lawyer for more than 42 years, one of my other reactions was that this is a fake and a fraud. But I kept looking. And listening to the background noises. I heard as background, the muezzin (mu'adh-dhin in Arabic) calling the people to prayers. That had the sound of truth in it. But I was still sceptical. And then I saw the fissure with part of the olive grove deep down in the crater [?]. I kept looking. Eventually, I was somewhat convinced. But not too sure.
I decided to google it. And I got other footage
of the same area captured by what seems to me different drones at different
times. And I was convinced.
This took place on 6 February 2023 and this
massive fissure ripping the olive grove apart was 150 kilometers from the epi centre
of the quake. It further transpired that the earth was ripped open for more
than 300 kilometers. Thousands of people perished. Homes were destroyed.
Businesses crumbled.
And yet this crater was gripping.
Herewith a quote from the write up with the
link below: “Even at
the southern tip of the larger rupture, about 150 km from the epicentre of the
initial 7.8 magnitude quake, the village of Tepehan, in Hatay province,
witnessed extraordinary cracks tearing through the surface.”
Further thoughts of mine were that it is the
brutal, creative power of nature at work; and I was thinking of Genesis chapter
1. When God, according to Moses, created the heavens and the earth. Powerful.
Brutal. Creativity at work. Click on these links: Another link.
One of the people I sent these videos, and my
initial thoughts starkly reminded of the loss of lives and the destruction of
buildings, so as to remind me of the tragedy. This was not lost on me. I was painfully
aware of this.
And I was thinking of the tsunami that struck
Japan some years ago – We only saw the devastating effects of the quake and how
it played out on land. We were not privy to the craters and fissures deep down
on the crust of the earth covered by sea water.
Now I am trying to create something to remind
me of this midnight experience. And I will keep you posted as to what I am
doing.
This is obviously not an academic paper on the
quake – just a couple of hundred words to record some of it. I am still reading
and I am sketching.
Please write me your story: neelscoertse@wirelessza.co.za
