A Tragedy and a call
From EGST News
Dr. Yisihak Tissema’s journey to the Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology (EGST) began in the waters of the Indian Ocean amid the wreckage of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961. This is his story:
“I had worked as a gynaecologist in Ethiopia for ten years when the opportunity arose for a colleague and me to fly to Nairobi for a medical workshop sponsored by the United Nations Development Program. This would prepare me to train others in my field, but the Lord had wider training in mind for me than this medical workshop. It was my first time to travel outside of Ethiopia.
I arrived early for check-in, but my colleague was late. When we checked in, he was assigned seat 19A near the front of economy class, but I was given 33C at the back of the plane. We asked why we had been separated but were told that it was because the flight was full.
About 36-40 minutes after take-off, the hostesses began serving breakfast. As they entered the economy section, I noticed a commotion at the front of the plane. Shortly after, an announcement came over the loudspeakers indicating that the plane had been hijacked. “We are escaped political prisoners and we have agreed with the pilot to take us to our chosen destination”.
We would later learn that this was Australia. The hijackers, speaking in Amharic, French and English continued, “We have only one bomb, but if there is any opposition, we will set it off and we will all perish”.
For about 3½ hours, we heard nothing. Children were playing in the aisles and all seemed normal. The first hint that we were not really headed for Australia was when the pilot announced that we were running out of fuel – one engine had already stopped – and that everyone should prepare for a crash landing.
He also reminded us that we knew the hijackers were responsible, implying that we should make sure they were captured if they survived. I thought of my family – my sons, aged 17, 15, 13, and my 1-year-old daughter.
I remember praying at that moment, ‘Jesus, save us. But if I am to die, please take my life; but if you save me, I will be your witness for the rest of my life.’ With the help of two young British women next to me, I was able to get my life vest on and a moment later, the plane hit the water.
The pilots had managed to get the plane near the coast of the Comoro Islands. But the plane was in about 25 metres of water and almost a kilometre from the shore. I tried to look around but couldn’t see anything. I felt myself going down into the water. Twice I took deep gulps of seawater before my seat began to float upward.
Suddenly, still strapped to my seat, I was above the surface of the water. I wasn’t sure how. Tourists and islanders had seen the plane go down and had come out to the crash site to rescue the survivors, using boats belonging to the beach hotel near the crash site.
My colleague at the front of the plane was not one of the survivors. He lost his life along with 122 others of the 175 who were on board. Many cried out for help in those last moments – some to God and some to Allah. Several of those who died had courageously witnessed about Christ in their last moments.
I escaped with only a cut lip and a couple of broken ribs. Remarkably, the French orthopaedist who attended me was someone I had met in Addis several years before and happened to be on the island, volunteering at a local hospital.
Some say I have lost my mind, but I did not forget my vow to give my life in service to the Lord. But even if it seems foolish to some, nothing is more important than keeping our promises. “When I made the vow as the plane was about to crash, I didn’t realize that it would involve training for ministry. In fact, it took me several years to realize that I needed to be trained”.
I thank the Lord for sparing my life that day. And I thank the Lord for bringing me to EGST as part of a journey that began with a promise that went up from seat 33C on November 23, 1996.”
Dr. Yisihak serves on the EGST student council and is a leader in the Bethel Mekane Yesus Church. He anticipates a ministry in church leadership, preaching and teaching.
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