Even though your newsfeed is likely filled with things other than the weather today, let’s take a moment to divert our attention to Hurricane Eta. Trish’s first words when we spoke about this were, “I wish I were there. I’m not feeling like, ‘Thank goodness I’m here. I’m safe.’” Reading the following, it’s easy to understand why her heart is where the hurricane is.
It has been 22 years and a few days since Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras. While Mitch may not ring a bell with you, it’s not something the people of Honduras are likely to forget anytime soon. At least 10,000 (some sources say 15,000) people were killed, though the actual number could be much higher. At a certain point, they simply stopped counting.
Trish is far from an alarmist and she pointed out that the area around Gracias was not impacted as badly by Hurricane Mitch as other parts of the country. The potential danger is very real, but the hope is that Eta will not be as strong as Mitch when it reaches Honduras. Also, since Gracias fared better with Mitch than other geographical areas there is a good chance that it won’t be at the center of the problems with Eta.
The storm is hitting Nicaragua first. It hit the eastern coast of Nicaragua first, and is crossing the country east to west. Since storms downgrade as they cross land, it shouldn’t be nearly that strong when it hits Honduras. At the time we spoke, Eta was expected to enter Honduras at around 1:00 pm on Nov. 4th as a tropical storm. Eta is taking her own sweet time and is moving westward at 7mph. She was originally projected to be a smaller hurricane, and to downgrade faster once hitting land, so she’s clearly got a mind of her own. Gracias is approximately 160 miles from the border, as the crow flies, to give you an idea of how long it will be before it reaches Gracias.
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| Bridge washed out near La Ceiba, Honduras |
Hurricane Mitch hit in the north and traveled south. Eta is coming from the east and going west. Gracias is sort of on the edge of the cone of possibility of where the storm will hit. This could impact a lot of the feeding centers that are farther out from Gracias. On a national scale, it should be mentioned that cities like Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula don’t handle flooding well. There will likely be a lot of damage, and this couldn’t come at a worse time.
The economy is still suffering the effects of COVID-19. And tropical storms, flooding, and mudslides don’t mix well with the crops in the ground. If the country’s crops are destroyed . . . well, it’s something no one wants to think about. Trish mentioned that Sowers4Pastors is now even MORE grateful to the people who have packed food and to those who continue to do so.
Kim Hall has been working with a group of people to purchase tarps and go out to homes they knew needed additional roofing. Please pray that there will be minimal wind and rain damage for everyone. When you pray for your sponsored children, remember their families, pastors, and all of Honduras.
Russell and Iris are at home with their children. Remember that Iris is due to deliver baby #3 in the next few weeks. Rachel and Nathan are currently in the U.S., but Rachel’s husband, his sisters, and the college girls who live with them, are all still in Tegucigalpa. Rachel’s home is near the river, so that is another thing to add to the prayer list. It’s not easy for Allen and Trish to be away right now when there is so much happening on the home front, so don’t forget to pray for their stress levels, too.
Also - stay tuned for the next blog post in which Kelsea relates her ongoing attempts to re-enter Honduras. THAT story is quite a page-turner!
- posted by Christi
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