Becat - Background

IF MT. AGUNG ERUPTS, WHAT WILL WE DO?

For the people of Bali so that they might be safe and at peace.The work of the younger generation of Bali.

Hey … old lady … listen. The most dangerous of the disaster-prone areas is coloured red. I see. An area that is less dangerous is coloured pink. And? And the area coloured yellow is still dangerous but only slightly. Oh ..if that is the case .. then I will go to the yellow area. So I won’t get hurt. Ah … no … no … it’s not like that. The yellow area is also not safe. That’s the area where there may be flows of cold lava. Hahaha. … what? Cold lava? Gee … you security guys don’t know anything. Cold lava? There is no such thing as cold lava. Do they put it in the fridge? Hahaha … gee. What did you just say? Cold lava … just listen … listen. Cold lava consists of sand, rocks, mud and silica. Silica? What is silica? Silica is a very smooth material from the mountain and it is very dangerous. It flows very quickly and with force. When GunungMerapi erupted one village was swept away by a cold lava flow. And then there is the ash raining down. Ash rain? Grey rain? Now the rain comes in colours!! No ..no..no .. you are a very funny old lady. The ash rain can be up to half a metre deep.

“Hey … old lady.  You are still here … in the danger zone known as the KRB (Kawasan Rawan Bencana = Disaster Prone Area).

Yes … so? Well you can’t be here. When the volcano erupted in 1963 my village was safe. So why are you telling me to leave now? And if there is an eruption, there will be enough time to go to a safe place. So you know how to tell if an eruption is going to happen? Um ..not really … but the point is … I will run .. fast. And your husband is old … what about him? Oh … him. I’ll just leave him alone. The main thing is that I will run. Oh … a Super Granny, huh? So you can run faster than lava? What? What do you mean? If there is an eruption, the rocks travel as fast as the sound. Huh? Like when a person farts. When you hear the sound, you’ve already been hit by the smell. Oh … my God. If that is the case then what about my cows? I am really fond of my cows. If I don’t have cows, I can’t live. However I can’t carry them if there is … what’s do you call it? … thick ash and lava. Hmmm … for your cows to be safe, they can be taken to a cow shed. That’s too far. What will happen to them there? Will they get fed? Will my cows get any food? You’ll have to talk to the village officials about that. Ask them if there is transport to a safe place. Don’t worry ….there will be food for your cows there. And if I go to a safe place, what will happen to my house? It will be deserted. Hopefully it will be safe. And no robbers. May a spirit guard your place there … just for a while of course. And what about schooling for my grandchildren? At the evacuation centre …..your grandchildren can attend school there. If me and my husband want to sleep together, is there a special place there at the evacuation centre? Wow … you are a lucky woman. So your husband is still going strong? Oh dear … actually that news is really scary. I am confused now. So what am I to do? Well … there’s no need to worry. I’ll come with you to the evacuation centre. Right now our lives are the most important thing. Don’t think about other problems just yet. We’ll face those step by step.

Hmmm … I am not afraid of Mt. Agung. No … in fact I pray to the mountain. I am actually afraid that I cannot return to the mountain. I do not want to move the mountain. Nor do I want to move from the mountain. It won’t be a problem for me to leave my home for a while because Mt Agung bestows good fortune upon its followers. My cows … you have to accept the situation … leave here for a while … OK? When the mountain is safe again we will all come home together. Oh my cows ... my cows … Agree? Agree? Yes … yes.Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Om.

Remember everybody that your safety is your own responsibility.