Sonia’s Story from the Bajo Lempa
The flooded Lempa River
Heavy rains continue to pound down on crops, homes and spirits on Wednesday as accumulated rainfall and flooding reached record levels in communities near the Lempa River. Over 32,000 people have evacuated their homes to seek shelter in schools, churches and albergues. In San Marcos Lempa over 750 people are seeking refuge from rains and flooding worse than Hurricane Mitch. At least two more communities will be arriving to these shelters this evening as the river continues to rise.
Sonia Silva arrived at the Centro Escolar Miguel Dueñas, on Sunday after the shelter near her community of Nueva Esperanza (New Hope) flooded. Sonia evacuated her home with her two young children on Saturday, and after one night in the shelter in Nueva Esperanza, was forced to evacuate again. Sonia’s husband, like many men in their community, stayed behind to guard homes and minimize damage but, with water levels now reaching the roofs, he arrived at the school yesterday, much to the relief of Sonia and her family.
Not everyone was as fortunate as Sonia’s family. Many people underestimated the severity of the flood and are now trapped between swelling rivers.
Sonia Silva in the classroom she is sharing with 70 people from her flooded community, Nueva Esperanza
“These people were on their roofs for three days in Nueva Esperanza without rest, without food, waiting and getting soaked,” said Guadalupe of ACUDESBAL, a community organization and SHARE partner in the Bajo Lempa region.
Many people who tried to wait out the rains are sick with painful fungi on their feet from standing for days in the contaminated water. People who initially tried to wait out the storm continue to arrive, crowding shelters that are already operating at twice their capacity.
Sonia, her two young children, husband, and 70 other people from Nueva Esperanza are living in one small classroom, each family sharing one mattress. Although her current situation is difficult, Sonia is most worried about what she and her family will find when they return to their home.
“We have lost everything, our corn, our home, pigs, chickens, mattresses, clothes, everything. My husband can’t believe it, we thought we would be fine this year, it was a great year for our corn. Now we have also lost the seeds for next year’s crop. When we return there will be a lot of sickness, without shelters, clothes or food. At least here we will have rice and beans.”
With most of the corn and bean crops ruined, many families in the Bajo Lempa are in similar situations and will not have any income to rebuild their homes and plant crops for next year. In response to this crisis SHARE will accompany communities in the Bajo Lempa to replant crops and provide assistance to help families rebuild. Please support these families as they rebuild their lives by donating today.
