“Let the tears fall down
My heart is filled with sorrow
For we have lost
Many loved ones”
– Lyrics from Te Vaka – Loimata E Maligi
Monday 9 March 2020: Today marks 20 years since the tragic dormitory fire at Motufoua Secondary School in Tuvalu that took the lives of 18 schoolgirls and their matron.
The girls were aged between 14 and 17; the matron was in her early 40s. The electrical fire, which rapidly spread throughout the girls’ locked dormitory, was believed to have been started by a candle used by one of the students to study after lights-out.
The 18 schoolgirls who perished could not escape due to a school policy which meant their dormitory was locked at night “to ensure that the boys are kept out from the girls,” according to then-Prime Minister Ionatana Ionatana. The matron died while trying to help the girls battle the flames. A further 18 schoolgirls managed to escape, reportedly after two of the survivors kicked down the dormitory’s second door.
The traumatic event rocked the small island nation. The grief-stricken Tuvaluan community gathered for memorial services held in Tuvalu and New Zealand. The Tuvalu Community Trust chairman at the time, Malua Taufala, an old-boy of Motufoua, said many of the 5000 Tuvaluans in New Zealand would be related to someone who died in the fire.
Motufoua Secondary School, located in Saniuta, is the main school on the island. The tragedy subsequently raised questions around fire safety equipment, training and safety procedures in the dormitories. The school’s policy was changed so that the girls’ dormitories would be unlocked at night.
Te Vaka founder Opetaia Foa’i, whose mother is from Tuvalu, wrote the song ‘Loimata E Maligi’ in memory of the 19 lives lost in the fire.
Lyrics
LOIMATA E MALIGI (Let the tears fall down)
Loimata e maligi
Toku loto fanoanoa
Ko galo atu
A fakapelepele
Omai te fakamafanafanaga
Solo te mae tenei
Ko galo atu
Na tamafine
Faigata fakamalamalama
Tino gafulu ma te toko iva
Ave ai te lumanai
A te atunuku
Loimata e maligi
Toku loto fanoanoa
Ko galo atu
A fakapelepele
Let the tears fall down
My heart is filled with sorrow
For we have lost
Many loved ones
Let the healing flow over me
and wash this pain away
For we have lost
Many of our young women
It’s hard to understand
That 19 lives were taken
And along with it
The future of a small nation
Let the tears fall down
My heart is filled with sorrow
For we have lost
Many loved ones
