Today we brought provisions to a few dozen of the families affected by the flooding in Chalco. We also invited them and others to the special service on the 14th.
I didn’t take a lot of video of actually handing out despensas (provisions), because I don’t want to embarrass anyone. However, we had some good talks with some people – many people remembered us from when we served the breakfasts (and we remembered some of them). Eventually word got around and we attracted a crowd of neighbours – there were about 20 people around us for a while.
With four vehicles and lots of helpers, we were done in about an hour. Now, we’ll see what happens on the 14th!
Yes, after quite a few days with no rain, the rain has returned.
We went back to Chalco today, this time to a new location, to serve breakfast. Mostly we saw dry streets (all right, they were dry until it started raining!), though there are still pools of water here and there (such as in lots and buildings).
So the clean up is really getting rolling, which means mass chaos (as you’ll see). Most businesses in this area are still closed (well, the door may be open, but there’s nothing inside worth selling!), but people are shovelling things out of houses and out of sewers and so on.
Though some help is coming now, it’s little and it’s late. There were some recent protests by people from one community in Chalco a day or two ago. They had a "discussion" with police, as they asked why more help has not come.
A few of you have helped, and it’s appreciated. A couple people have mentioned that there’s been little (no?) coverage of this in Canada. Considering the thousands impacted, that’s pretty amazing. But we appreciate those of you who have been watching and listening here, and praying and giving.
Here’s a brief video to give you an idea what the street looked like today. With the rain, it was pretty miserable, and let’s just say the air wasn’t pleasant (which is why you’ll see many wearing facial masks)…
It’s day 10 after the flood, and the cleanup is just beginning. That’s partly because a lot has still been under water until today. Now that the water is receding, the cleanup can begin.
This morning we went as a family with some people from our church to help serve breakfast. The highway is still closed, and it looks like there’s still some work to do before it opens. However, cars that were totally underwater are being pulled out.
In Chalco, those who have houses free of water (and there are a lot still full of water, even on streets that are dry) are sweeping them out and throwing their ruined belongings on the street to be collected.
Here’s a quick video to show the progress that’s being made.
Thanks so much to those who contacted us recently wanting to donate some food to the flood victims! If you’re willing to help, just send a cheque to CAM International or CAM International of Canada (details here), mentioning project #062250. Then let us know, that way we can spend the money without waiting for it to go through "the system".
Imagine having a metre or two of sewage water in your house for 9 DAYS. You have nowhere to take a bath, nothing to cook with, and no food even if you could cook it.
This is day 9 after the water flooded into Chalco, a few minutes from our house, after heavy rains hit Mexico. The disaster affected thousands of people. The houses will never be the same.
In some areas where the water has receded, you can see how bad things actually are. The sewage water rushed into people’s houses and pooled in there, now leaving filthy sewage sludge in each house. Bed, fridges, clothes, stoves, TVs, microwaves … many things are now just garbage, to be left in the street and hauled away.
One of the concerns, naturally, is that disease is spreading because of the conditions. Skin deseases and "pink eye" are the biggest concerns at the moment.
I took some brief footage today (just over 2 minutes) to show you how the water has receded in some areas, though if you look close you can still see people in boats and a car with water up to the middle of its windows. Some cleanup has begun, though it’s amazing how little help there has been.
You can also see, at the beginning, people from our church serving hot breakfasts and lots of people enjoying them.
Once the water goes down, we hope to be able to give out some pre-boxed provisions (despensas) door to door. If you would like to help, these are around $10 each – please contact us if you’re interested in providing one or more. This one pictured above is a typical despensa. It contains basic food supplies.
This morning several of us went back to the flood zone in Chalco to serve hot breakfasts to a few of the flood victims. Refried beans, eggs, bread, hot coffee, and water.
Just getting started, serving breakfast in Chalco
Quite a few people came, but it’s difficult to get to a lot of people because of the water.
Fortunately, there were people in boats coming and going that helped us out. We served out the food, covered it up well in bags, and they loaded it onto the boat. Then they would go to houses, climb ladders or send up buckets with food and supplies.
We hope to be able to serve breakfasts for 10-15 days, so we’ll see how it goes. So far so good. Later on we’ll also be giving out more necessities.