The family of our dear friend Fr Fabio OP have been greatly impacted by last week’s devastating earthquake in Colombia. Fr Fabio was interviewed by Audrey Reidy of Kerry's Eye.
The community in Holy Cross offer our prayers for Fr Fabio’s family, all who are suffering and all involved in the recovery. We pray also for the eternal repose of the souls who tragically lost their lives.
Article by Audrey Reidy, Kerry’s Eye. Our thanks to Kerry's Eye for permission to share the full-text below.
Fr Fabio-Alexis Sánchez OP, who has visited Holy Cross Dominican Church in Tralee every summer for the past three years, was having lunch in Kerry when he received a message from a friend asking if his family were safe.
The magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck Colombia at around 7.30am local time on August 10. The powerful earthquake caused widespread destruction across western Colombia, including in Cali and Sevilla, where Fr Fabio's parents, brother, uncles, aunts, cousins and two grandmothers live.
"My family work in the coffee industry in Sevilla. So the news really impacted me," he said.
His brother is a police officer and has since been involved in the emergency response, helping with rescue and clean-up operations.
But in those first few hours, Fr Fabio had no idea whether any of his family were safe.
"My friend contacted me and said Fr Fabio how are your family. He said I had to check the news.
"I tried to contact them but it was impossible because the signal was down,” he said.
He and his sister, who lives in Philadelphia, immediately began following the news as they tried desperately to establish what was happening.
“It was impossible for four hours. Eventually, a short message arrived from my brother saying 'We are okay' - the only small text. But we wanted to hear their voices. But then my mother called me. She was in shock."
The worry didn't end with the call from his mother. His grandmother, who lives in the mountains in Sevilla, where Fr Fabio is originally from, was out of reach of the family.
Even his parents were unable to contact her, Fr Fabio said.
"Roads were blocked by rocks and debris brought down by the earthquake, they could not simply drive to her home to check on her. It was a huge worry because we could not contact her and no one could get there," he said.
The family waited anxiously until they finally received the news they had been hoping for: his grandmother was safe.
"It was 24 hours later before we knew she was safe. All I could do was pray," he said.
The devastation has been particularly painful for two of his uncles, who have been left with nothing after their homes were destroyed. The family went back among the rubble with his uncles to see whether any of their belongings could be salvaged.
Almost 300 people have died, thousands have been injured and hundreds remain missing, and tens of thousands of homes have been destroyed or badly damaged.
Fr Fabio will soon be returning home to help with the rebuilding of a 400-year-old church which was damaged in the earthquake.
The 33-year-old priest first heard his calling when was just eight years old when he was an altar boy.
He studied theology and philosophy in Rome, where he lives - when not in Kerry to improve his English and help in Holy Cross.
And he said he has built a special connection with the people of Tralee and with Holy Cross.
"It is like my second home here now, he said. “When people heard what had happened, they contacted me. People have been so kind."
He also paid tribute to Fr David, the provincial at Holy Cross, for the support he has given him.
Fr Fabio does not know when he will next return to Tralee and his immediate priority is Colombia, where he will help with the rebuilding work.
For now, his thoughts are with his family and the communities devastated and the many families still searching for loved ones amongst the rubble.
He hopes communities around the world will help with aid - and urges anyone who wants to make a donation to do so, no matter how small.