Makogai

About

Makogai (Fijian pronunciation: [makoˈŋai], also known as Makongai in English) is an island belonging to Fiji's Lomaiviti Archipelago. Covering an area of 8.4 square kilometres (2, 100 acres), it is situated at 17.27° South and 178.58° East. It has a maximum altitude of 267 metres (876 ft) on two peaks in the centre. Makogai is visible from Ovalau. To the south is Wakaya Island. The beach forest, cycad dominated, and coastal/marine ecosystem of the island and its surrounding reef contribute to its national significance as outlined in Fiji's Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. Captain William Bligh (formerly of HMS Bounty) passed between the islands of Koro and Makogai in early May 1789, becoming the first European to discover them. The island used to house a leper colony owned by the colonial government of Fiji with the help of the Missionary Sisters of the Society of Mary. The number of patients grew from 40 when the leprosarium opened in 1911 to 700 in 1950. They were nursed by Catholic sisters. Mother Mary Agnes was the superior of the lepers colony from 1916 until 1950. Patients came from other British colonies in the Pacific as well as from the various territories of the Dominion of New Zealand after 1922. Patients who were not residing at the hospital were living in villages organized by ethnicity, each community being allowed to keep their traditions and religious prac

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.