On Wednesday morning I woke up to the lamplight on 8th avenue in downtown Guatemala City that was shining into my hotel room, grabbed my too-heavy pack (oh, Dragons) and went out to catch my late 4:45am cab to the zone 9 bus terminal to San Salvador. Where the San Salvador bus terminal is in Guate is a gritty little sector. There's a market, a bus hub, and lots of really run-down buildings. At 5am there are people starting to unpack their fruit and vegetable cargo for the day, the sun is coming up and people are sipping sugary hot coffee out of little Styrofoam cups with maybe a little sweet bread or maybe a chuchito in the other hand.

In the bus station, classic one-light bulb ambiance and a little array of city weirdness - the guy with the weird eye, some up-late prostitute, a kid with no luggage, and a fat guy with a wad of cash all waiting for the same bus as me to San Salvador. Good times. I got to sit next to the weird eyes guy, Jesus from Campeche.

The bus ride was nice enough, the El Salvador border is only about 2 hours from Guatemala City. At the Guatemala exit the immigration guy stalled at my passport - I think afraid to give me permission to leave and also afraid to bring this to my attention. But I anticipated his hesitation and whipped out my Migra forms from the other day in the capital where I went to pay my Q10 a day for my 7 day visa overstay. He was relieved that I had already done this, made a few photocopies of my paperwork and stamped me out of Guatemala, but not without handwriting in my passport "You have 5 days to abandon the area." I assured him I was flying out that same day, no worries dude, I'll get out of Central America, I know when I'm not longer welcome. Haha.

On the other side of the border I bought a plate of cheese pupusas - oh, El Salvador I love you! and they were delish. The last 2 hours or so were pleasant, flying along the highway into San Salvador. When I got to the terminal, I grabbed my bag and caught a taxi to the airport. The airport is 40km outside of the city. Hmm. Interesting. The airport in Guatemala City is right in the urban jungle, surrounded by the highrises and hotels of the nicest areas of Guatemala City, although the flight path is right over the worst parts. If the planes fly low enough, they can almost shake you out of bed.

In San Salvador - or Comalapa - the airport is in the middle of nowhere. It looks like a secret landing strip out of Jurassic Park.

The flight was full of other folks who were originally flying out of Guatemala City but couldn't because of the lengthy closure. But I know they took tourist shuttles to arrive in San Salvador, not the bus that originates from the one-light bulb, next door to a brothel bus station special in the beloved zone 9. Some times I have great pride in the lengths I take to avoid comfort.

I arrived into Atlanta in the early evening and grudgingly went through customs, but entertained by the cultural melting pot that is US customs in an airport, the Caribbean Spanish! The calls for Albanian translators! The tourists still in their resort wear! Then I found my way to the gate for my 5 hour flight to Seattle. The airport was indeed the culture shock I was anticipating. My eyes watered then hurt at the fare: donuts, hot dogs, pizza, southern fare and sandwiches as big as ya head.

I spent yesterday somewhat aimlessly wandering Seattle, taking the familiar buses, passing my personal landmarks, and silently noting the changes, the growth of condos and new construction over what used to be old buildings and a danky but awesome Taco Bell (Taco Bell on Broadway, RIP). Today I find myself in Olympia then tomorrow off to Portland, then Tuesday flying to San Francisco.

Yesterday in Seattle I was absolutely shocked by the quietness on public transportation, no loud motors, wild music, screaming chickens. And at the general cleanliness of the street folks. There was a guy in the U-district screaming Metallica lyrics in a Mexican wrestling mask. I heard a mom ask her daughter about what she was "tweeting." I was confused.

Meanwhile, recovery and clean up still rock Guatemala. This is very interesting as a summary and call for continued support:


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“AGATHA” REVEALS REALITY OF RURAL GUATEMALA

INTRODUCTION & BACKGROUND

In recent years, because of environmental degradation caused by large transnational companies, the Guatemalan countryside has suffered a number of serious natural disasters.

In 1998, Hurricane Mitch caused widespread loss of life and left many rural families in a state of dire poverty, bereft of their few meager belongings and unable to continue growing food to sustain themselves.

In 2005, before Guatemala even had a chance to recover from the disasters caused by Mitch, Tropical Storm Stan arrived, leaving thousands dead, communities completely wiped out and lands destroyed. Hundreds of thousands of campesinos lost their crops, and, as well, they lost the few social services that had been provided for them.

[For many years, Rights Action has worked and supported the CCDA (Campesino Committee of the Highlands), particularly after the death and destruction left by “Mitch” (1998) and “Stan” (2005).]

Now, at the beginning of planting season (rain season = “invierno”), tropical storm “Agatha” has paid a surprise visit, revealing the reality in which rural Guatemala tries to survive. Most of the destruction is centred in the area with the highest concentration of poor and extremely poor indigenous-campesino communities, such as the departments of Sololá, Quiché, Chimaltenango, Sacatepéquez, Suchitepéquez and Izabal.

However, the authorities do not appear to be interested in developing policies or passing laws that would eradicate this vulnerability and guarantee integral rural development.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DAMAGE CAUSED BY AGATHA

Tropical Storm Agatha hit Guatemalan soil on Friday night (May 28), bringing with it a very heavy rainfall which persisted and increased until 4pm on Saturday afternoon, causing human and material losses all across Guatemala, especially in the departments mentioned.

Communities experienced indescribable hardship; some places lost all communication with the outside and were left in total isolation, while people called out in desperation begging for help. There were mudslides and rivers overflowed. Within a few hours, streams turned into an avalanche of mud and 6 metre-diameter boulders. The mudslides uprooted and carried away large areas of forest, leaving in its wake a one-kilometer wide area of devastation. Communities were left without services: piped water systems were damaged, electricity poles came down and water treatment tanks were destroyed. As well, our community septic tank latrines were destroyed, making us vulnerable to gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases. On top of all this, large areas of crops and parts of the roadways were destroyed.

GENERAL ASSESSMENT OF DAMAGE TO DATE

In recent years, the Campesino Committee of the Highlands (CCDA) has been putting risk management and disaster prevention procedures in place.

As a result, communities responded immediately to instructions from the team and this prevented further damage and human suffering.

The National Coordinating Agency for Disaster Reduction (CONRED) has provided the following statistics on the damage caused by Agatha throughout Guatemala:

28,264 persons at risk
128,149 persons affected
42,286 persons harmed
124,835 persons evacuated
64,383 persons in shelters
100 persons disappeared
87 persons injured
152 persons deceased
5,872 dwellings at risk
21,927 dwellings damaged

Given that most of the damage occurred in the above mentioned departments, the CCDA is working in these areas and has taken the following action:

1. 10 shelters have been set up in the following communities:
a. 4 in the communities of Quixayá, San Lucas Tolimán, Sololá
b. 1 in the town centre of the municipality of San Lucas Tolimán, Sololá
c. 1 temporary shelter in la Colonia Pampojilá, San Lucas Tolimán, Sololá.
d. 1 in Agua Escondida in the municipality of San Antonio Palopó
e. 1 in the town centre of the municipality of Patulul, in the barrio El Triunfo.
f. 1 in Patzún, Chimaltenango.
g. 1 shelter in San Jorge, the municipal centre of the department of Sololá.

2. Help was provided to a total of approximately 4500 persons, including children, youth, single women, adults and senior citizens – women and men.

3. Search and rescue teams were formed to remove belongings from the rubble

4. 2 teams were formed to provide food in each shelter

5. First-aid medical assistance and primary-care psychological assistance.

6. 3 transport teams were formed to help people go and come from communities

ON-GOING EMERGENCY RESPONSE WORK -- Therefore, to help us carry out our work, we REQUEST:

a) Support to set up storing centres in towns, for storage of the following items:
a. Food supplies
b. clothing
c. Medicine
d. mattresses
e. Coats
f. Blankets
g. Disposable Diapers
h. Eating utensils
i. Tents
j. Clean water (throughout the country)
k. TIGO card code, email ccda_cafe_justicia@yahoo.com

b) Human Resources:
a. Doctors
b. Nurses
c. General volunteers

c) Equipment:
a. Generating plants
b. Double traction vehicles
c. All terrain vehicles
d. Mechanical saws
e. Galvanized and PVC pipes for installing new drinking water systems
f. Tools for clearing (picks, shovels, crowbars, back-hoe loader tractors)
g. Industrial stoves
h. Rescue equipment (lamps, tents, boots, helmets, ropes and cords, etc.)
i. Basic equipment for construction of latrines in shelters.
j. Tanks for transporting and storing water
k. Radio communication equipment with a minimum band of 20 mile radius
l. Pneumatic water pumps

d) Cash donations can be made to Account number: CCDA-BENEFICIO, 00-5800634-9, Banco AgroMercantil.

Sololá, June 1, 2010
Campesino Committee of the Highlands (CCDA)

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TROPICAL TROPICAL STORM AGATHA – DEATH TOLL RISES TO 150, By Sylvia Holt on June 3, 2010, http://apexnewsnetwork.com/22165/tropical-storm-agatha-death-toll-rises-to-150/

Tropical storm Agatha has caused havoc in the cities and villages of Guatemala. Villagers are trying to dig out the dead bodies from the muddy trails due to the landslide. These landslides are caused by the season’s first tropical storm of 2010, Agatha. According to an official report from Guatemala, around 150 people are confirmed dead and 100 are still missing. The flooding and landslides have caused a state of emergency declaration in Honduras.

Approximately 60 people are reported dead in the Chimaltenango province west of Guatemala alone. Around 120,000 people have been evacuated from Guatemala till date. These are just the initial numbers, as the rubble is yet to be cleared, death toll might increase.

Tropical Storm Agatha has slowly dissipated, and is now just heavy rains. Meterologist expect the heavy ran to last for several more days. Once the weather has moved out, officials expect the death and injury tolls to increase.

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STORM AGATHA BLOWS A HOLE IN GUATEMALA CITY
HUNDREDS DEAD AS TORRENTIAL RAIN SWEEPS CENTRAL AMERICA. SINKHOLE IN GUATEMALA SWALLOWS THREE-STOREY BUILDING
Peter Walker, The Guardian, Tuesday 1 June 2010

Tropical Storm Agatha swept across Central America yesterday, bringing torrential rain that killed more than 100 people and opened a 60m-deep sinkhole in Guatemala City which reportedly swallowed up a three-storey building. The first named storm of the 2010 Pacific season dumped more than a metre of rain in parts of Guatemala, also hitting El Salvador and Honduras. At least 113 people were reported killed, with around 50 missing in Guatemala alone as rescue workers searched through the rubble.

The 30m-diameter sinkhole opened up in a northern district of Guatemala City, with residents blaming the rains and substandard drainage systems. Local reports said one man was killed when the building was swallowed. In 2007, three people died when a similar sinkhole appeared in the same area.

Guatemala was the worst affected country, with a confirmed death toll of 92, although that is likely to rise when rescuers reach remote villages. Almost 100,000 people have been evacuated from their homes. Nine people were confirmed killed in El Salvador and 12 in Honduras.

"I've got no one to help me. I watched the water take everything," Carlota Ramos told Reuters outside her mud-swamped brick house in Amatitlán, a town near the Guatemalan capital.

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TO MAKE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS for “Agatha Relief”

for community based organizations doing emergency relief work, make check payable to "Rights Action" and mail to:

* UNITED STATES: Box 50887, Washington DC, 20091-0887
* CANADA: 552 - 351 Queen St. E, Toronto ON, M5A-1T8

CREDIT-CARD DONATIONS: http://rightsaction.org/contributions.htm