Willemstad Times
Blind Boy found in the Devil's Mouth! By Deborah Suniura!
Interview with Phillip who was found in the Devil's mouth!
Q1:Why did you leave the island?
P:My Mom was sick and tired of staying on the island(Willemstad,Curacau) while we were
surrounded by u-boats so we left on the S.S Hato.
Q2:How did you get on the Devils mouth?
P:We got torpedoed by German U-boats and I got hit in the head and fell backwards onto a life boat with a Black man(Timothy).So we stayed on the Ocean for about a month I think and then we found the Devil's mouth and we decided to stay there not knowing it was the devil's mouth till before the storm hit.
Q3:How did you survive that long on a small island?
P:It was mainly due to Timothy, he made a hut,got food,set up the fire,and he taught me to do so even if I was blind from the crack in my head.But then Timothy protected me from the storm and went away for me to care for myself on my own.
Q4:What gave you hope that someone might find you?
P:Well at first we heard moters every once in awhile and Timothy set up a fire so if they passed by they would see us,along with rocks that spelled "help."But after Timothy left...I did what he had done to survive and came up with the idea of black smoke.
Q5:What brought you to trust each other?
P:At first I didn't trust him one bit and I thought he was stupid and greedy.But he showed me that he cares alot and soon we became better friends then I could have imagined before.
Q6:How did you get around with being blind?
P:First it was frightning becuase even in the darkest of night you can still see your own hand, and I couldn't.I also thought it was night but it was day but it became easy to tell what time of day it was depending on where the sunlight came from.Anyway Timothy made me a cane and rope trails to help get around the island but it became my home so I didn't need it to get around.
Q7:How much do you think you have changed since you left Willemstad?
P:Alot, Timothy said That I looked very different and my mother might not know me now because I look tall,lean,and brown instead of short,white,and wobbly.I also learned how to survive when there is no one else to help so I became unafraid and I didn't have to lean on people anymore.
Q8:Will you tell us some of the survival skills you used on the island?
P:Sure!I made a hut out of dried palm fronds and made a raincatchment into the keg of water we had from the raft.