Devastation

Yesterday, we travelled south via Constitucion and Pelluhue, heading toward Pto Montt. We were bringing kits for the ppl in Pelluhue to put in their media-aguas.
What we met was unimaginable devastation. We have been working inland, helping rebuild homes.
But the people on the coast were hit doubly hard. At 3:33am in the morning they were hit by an 8.8 earthquake, and within 20 minuites of that they were hit by a tsunami.
The people in Pelluhue first had all their houses collapse, and then watched the sea illuminated by a big harvest moon pull all the way out as they had never seen before, only to rush back in with a 12+ meter wave, washing everything away.
What looks now like a beach front in Pelluhue was actually where 100s of homes had stood just 2 months ago.
The kits we brought had a cabinet, dishes, pots & pans, and a stove-top for the media-aguas (a.k.a. shacks) that the government has put up.
But this felt like nothing compared to the great need we encountered.
Please, please keep these people in your thoughts and prayers! The work has only just begun.

Mud n' Rain

Today was a our first day of rain and mud! Oh the joy. This was literally the first day we experience any real rain, and within just this short amount of time, (1 day), Espinillo and the roads there turned into a mud slide. The farmers of course, are somewhat happy with the much needed rain, but on the other hand, it makes our work building houses, much harder. Both trucks taking the team back home got stuck in the mud yesterday. The one I was sitting in was parked on a muddy hillside, the “driveway” to one of the homes we are working on. It seemed the truck was going to slide all the way down into the valley.
Ness and I are going to have to make a purchase of a pair of boots each!
My heart went out today especially to the people that still don’t have roofs over their heads, and are having to live through such a wet and cold winter. If I was already so ready to get home, change my wet clothes and warm up after a day of work, how must it be for the people who have nothing??
Meanwhile, we have been well. We’ve been hopping living locations, a new cabana (little vacation houses commonly rented out during the summer months here) each week. We left behind the place we had to ourselves, and now have been living with other teams working with us. Its been a nice change of pace, having many people around us and giving our lives a cheery and lively atmosphere. Of course, it also means readjusting a bit…
Next week we hope to head down to Constitucion, Concepcion and further south, to see more of how the Chilean people are faring in other parts of the country badly hit by the earthquakes. Also, after a few weeks of quiet, the tremors have started to get increasingly strong, the last one being a 6.8. Especially at night, the earth seems to move. We were wondering, is there a reason for that???
Either way, I’ve become so used to feeling things move that now I have not felt anything for the past few nights, while the rest all talk in the morning, “Did you feel that one at around 12.30? That was really strong wasn’t it? Or what about the one at around 4?” I just listen cluelessly. The girls tease that they’ll have to think of a good way to wait me up, like with a bucket of water, should a real big quake hit!
We are already starting to feel that our time here is drawing to end, with only a short 3 weeks left. We know that’ll just fly by!
In the meantime, we keep praying for the people here, for the ongoing battle of getting roofs over peoples heads!