water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink!

Last night, it started raining here in Archidona around 7 p.m. and did not stop until this morning around 8 a.m. It also rained in Tena, the capital city and in the surrounding communities. I woke up a few times last night noticing the strength of the rain, but thought nothing of it. Laurel, who lives in Tena, called me around 7:30 this morning to let me know of the destruction the rains had caused there. The water rose higher than it ever has before. It completely covered the roads and flooded many of our favorite restaurants there by the river. Houses and belongings were being brought down the river which eventually took out the bridge to the zoo on the island where the two rivers, the Pano and the Tena come together. There is still a family stranded there waiting for the waters to reside. The bridge was made with steel-reinforced concrete, which you can see by the picture above. I went out to survey the damage this afternoon and it was truly incredibly. The roof of a dance club by the river was completely destroyed, stores with their merchandise strewn across the road, everyone helping and doing what they could. To top it off, there is no water in the pipes and the river water is too muddy/dangerous to use. It's ironic. Two girls died here in my town because they couldn't get out of their house fast enough to escape the rushing water. No schools here in town had classes. It was truly a sad, interesting day. Tena has alot to clean up and rebuild in the coming days. The waters have started to reside, but as of this afternoon the Misahualli river that runs beside Archidona and eventually into the Pano river was still very high. Everyone out here from Peace Corps is safe and accounted for, thankfully. It just started sprinkling in Archidona....