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Quake: Puerto Lopez two years after a 7.8 rocked Ecuador #AtoZChallenge
April 16, 2016 at 6:58pm, a 7.8 earthquake shook Ecuador’s coast. If you have not read my reliving of that night in Puerto Lopez, find it here. Some have asked what the buildings in the photos look like now. What follows are the photos from April 17, 2016 and the same location two years later. The first building was torn down and has not been rebuilt. The second building was rebuilt with some finishing work still to be completed. The fire house had to be completely demolished. Puerto Lopez has turned the land into a parking lot and the fire department has moved to a new location. The night…
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International Aid Tents – From Post-Earthquake Tent City to Traveling Circus
“Sometimes by not knowing the truth we make incorrect judgments about situations” — Sunday Adelaja What happened to tents from Ecuador’s post-earthquake tent cities? After the April 16, 2016 devastating 7.8 Ecuador earthquake, international aid organizations raced to Ecuador, assisting those who lost everything. Aid organizations set up tent camps where families who lost their homes lived, some for a few weeks, some for many months, a few for more than a year. As Ecuador recovered from the earthquake, families, one by one, vacated the tents and moved into new homes. A second life with the circus When the circus came to Puerto Lopez recently, performers set up their…
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Never Ending Aftershocks
“Anyone else just feel an earthquake in Cuenca?” — Facebook post by the author, June 30, 2017, 5:32 PM June 30, 2017, 5:29 PM The building began swaying back and forth, as if an enormously strong wind was blowing. There was only a light breeze outside. My husband, Scott, and I were reading in our tenth floor Cuenca apartment. We looked at each other, both saying “earthquake” at the same time. There was no panic nor even any movement toward getting up from our chairs. We knew it was too light to be a problem for us. We were concerned about those living near the epicenter, wherever that was. I…
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#WATWB – Clean Drinking Water
This is my first post for the We Are The World Blogfest, which occurs on the last Friday of every month. I chose a story I wrote about a man providing clean drinking water to thousands in coastal Ecuador. A few weeks after the April 16, 2016 7.8 Ecuador earthquake, Tennessee pastor Gary Vance arrived in Puerto Lopez. He had a suitcase full of water filters and a plan – provide clean drinking water for those who needed it. Installed water filter post-earthquake, Ecuador Photo courtesy of Gary Vance Gary has made six trips to Ecuador since the earthquake, spent 88 days in country, delivered 1000 filters, and documented…
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Zoo – I live in one! #AtoZChallenge
Someone told me it’s all happening at the zoo. — Paul Simon When I wrote my first post for the A to Z Challenge, I did not know the what the remaining posts were going to be about. While blogging about my life in Ecuador for the past month, I realized that I live in a zoo. A natural, wild, amazing zoo! Let’s recap what is in my zoo. Wildlife in my zoo Throughout the month, I introduced the following zoo residents: (click link to open post) Blue-footed boobies Humpback whales Iguanas In a park At my home A Monkey Owls A Frog Sea Turtles Rounding out my zoo…
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Water. Clean Drinking Water #AtoZChallenge
Drinking tap water in coastal Ecuador is a great way to get parasites. Or worse. — EJB A few weeks after the April 16, 2016 7.8 Ecuador earthquake, Tennessee pastor Gary Vance arrived in Puerto Lopez. He had a suitcase full of water filters and a plan – provide clean drinking water for those who needed it. Clean water welcomed in a tent camp Photo courtesy of Gary Vance He offered to install a water filter for the Olon orphanage. We went there the next morning. Gary installed a filter and trained a thrilled staff on maintaining it. Water filter installed at the Olon Orphanage Photo courtesy of Gary…
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Post-Earthquake makeshift camps #AtoZChallenge
“Living outside is crappy.” — Cheryl PaPania, Don Juan, ManabÃ, Ecuador April 16, 2017 marked the one year anniversary of a massive 7.8 Ecuador earthquake. I described my experience the night of the earthquake earlier. Today is about a group of people I met 12 days after the quake. Our friend’s car had been in the shop, ready for pick up, when the earthquake hit. The car was at her mechanic’s shop in Manta, an hour and a half north. His family and building structures had survived and after 11 days he proclaimed the roads passable. Some of us collaborated to bake and purchase food and drinks for those we…
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Earthquake – The night a 7.8 shook Ecuador #AtoZChallenge
On April 16, 2016 at 6:58pm, my husband and I were reading outside on our second floor deck when we felt a small jolt. Earthquakes are common on the Ecuador coast. We glanced at each other then back at our books. No big deal. Then a large jolt came and got stronger. Huge deal. We jumped up and made our way down the stairs quickly. No easy feat as the stairs, the house and the railing were all moving out of sync with one another. We stood outside, watching and listening. The car was bouncing off the ground, car alarm screaming. The metal garage door seemed louder than the car…
