Oceans and Seas

the work of author Michael Krieger

Covered by the Sea: Surviving a Hurricane – Part 19

Posted on Jan 27, 2017

Covered by the Sea: Surviving a Hurricane – Part 19

So did Frisbie take the drugs from t medicine chest or not? It certainly seems like he did, and it also seems that he may have had a reason to, one that he felt he could not share with any of the other adults. While living in Moorea, French Polynesia in the early 1930s, Frisbie contracted lymphatic filariasis, an infection of the lymph system by microscopic parasitic worms. The disease is spread by mosquitos when they bite an infected individual and then inject the parasites into others. Sometimes the disease produces inflammation and pain in the kidneys. After a period of years it often develops into elephantiasis, a condition in which a limb or limbs may swell, sometimes to a grotesque size. Frisbie’s condition had produced elephantiasis long before he and the children had reached Suwarrow, but according to Johnny in her book, The Frisbies of the South Seas , (5) he was able to control the swelling by wrapping his leg with elastic bands. Thus, he may have been able to prevent the others from discovering his condition.

Neither in my lengthy interviews with Ron Powell, nor in the diaries of either Clark or Ellenden, is there any mention of Frisbie suffering from elephantiasis. It seems likely that Clark would have forced Frisbie and his children to leave Anchorage, isolating them on one of the other motus, if he had been aware of the contagious disease. At that time there was no known treatment for filariasis, and the risk of the disease spreading to the others probably would have given Clark the very excuse he needed to banish Frisbie. In fact, he probably would have relished doing so. Considering these implications, Frisbie, though suffering from the disease, certainly would not have wanted the others to learn of it. According to Johnny, Frisbie was suffering terribly from a bout of fever produced by his filariasis at the time of the hurricane. The pain he was experiencing would have been motivation enough for him to inject himself with morphine. In any case, it seems likely that he did just that, since Clark notes that there were empty morphine ampoules discovered in the area where the medicine chest turned up.

In addition to the medicine chest, Clark and Powell also found a water tank that had somehow survived the storm. They cleaned it out and took it over to the catchment area where they set it up to collect and store rainwater. Two drums with some good water still inside also had been found. It was apparent that the coconuts everyone had collected for drinking would not last long. Also, most of the fallen coconuts had been carried off the island by the waves that swept over it. While a large assortment of canned goods were uncovered, the lack of drinking water was turning out to be the most immediate problem.

To address the water problem, Clark took it upon himself to set up rations. He told everyone that the thirteen of them would share one gallon per day. This meant that each person had only a cup of water per day, which was barely a survival ration in such a hot climate. While no one objected to the ration, and while everyone understood the need, there was an undercurrent of dissatisfaction at the dictatorial way in which Clark imposed his will.

Clark notes in his diary for Wednesday, February 25, “Had tiff with Jimmy. He had found a container of brownish water and asked if he could wash dishes with it. I promptly dumped the water, as there was to be no favoritism. Water is only to be used for drinking.”

Everyone was still weak, feeling the effects of the storm and suffering from infected cuts. Clark set Teophilio to work cleaning up what was to be their new campsite, but he notes that Teophilio was not able to do much because his knee had been injured during the storm. Ellenden was also suffering from a large ulcer on his leg, but still managed to shift all his radio gear into the remains of the old supply shed and start dismantling and cleaning it. Many people just seemed to wander around, not doing much, still in a daze. Clark notes that Frisbie worked diligently finding and stockpiling cans of food, tools, and odds and ends of fishing gear, including two valuable spear tips.

By Wednesday afternoon the weather seemed to be almost back to normal. The water in the lagoon was flat. There was only a slight breeze and the day became very hot. Nahora, Frisbie and Powell went out onto the reef to fish. Nahora returned with a huge tuna sufficient to feed everyone. Over the next few days, all of the men took on various projects, Nahora and Powell made an oven out of rocks and pieces of iron, which Jimmy could use for baking. Pratt disassembled and cleaned the Winchester rifle and then started digging a place for foundation logs for the new kai house. Powell overhauled the forge and was able to make two bread-making tins for Jimmy. Frisbie resurrected his canoe.

Still, Clark was upset with Nahora for “slacking off,” and castigated him in front of the others. “When, after asking him to do a job, he wandered off, then came back and sat on a log. I had to speak quite sharply to him about it.”

Thursday night, a rain shower added an inch of fresh drinking water in the bottom of their water storage tank.

Ellenden had been working diligently from dawn to dusk rebuilding and testing his radio equipment. He felt that he would soon be able to transmit and receive signals. On Saturday he tried to make contact with Rarotonga. He was not successful. Nothing worked right. He finished up by blowing some 15 amp fuses and couldn’t even attempt to transmit a signal. Nor could he receive one. All of this meant that the little band of survivors had no possibility of contacting the outside world or requesting any help— not that any help would likely be forthcoming considering there were no vessels available to provide it. At that time there were only a few small trading schooners(6) plying the waters of the huge archipelago of islands that constituted the Cooks, and there were no steamers as all.

Frisbie and Nahora continued to provide fish for everyone. Now that his canoe was operable, Frisbie caught plenty of fish in the lagoon. That Sunday the group fried fish for lunch and baked fish in Jimmy’s new oven for dinner. Clark notes that he bandaged some of the group’s wounds, and that the infected cuts on Powell’s leg looked especially troublesome. With the few tools that had been found, Powell tried to repair one of the remaining New Zealander’s small boats, the others had been carried away or totally destroyed.

Next (part 20) >>

(5) 1959, Doubleday & Company, NY

(6) The Tiare Taporo was in Papeete, Tahiti being overhauled.