In the City

We escaped much damage from Noel but made up for with Olga! It has been a disaster- we are under a state of emergency and they are calling for another 24 hours of rains.  I have been out several times today, trying to check on our people but it isn’t easy due to continued heavy rains. The Hole is flooded, La Joya got slammed this time which is unusual (our church was flooded and it is a LONG way from the river!), Los Santos is flooded, and the list goes on.  It is so sad and discouraging to see folks who don’t have much lose it! I should have taken pictures in La Joya- the streets are still full of mud, people’s wet, ruined belongings are sitting in the street, some people put all their belongings on their roof so it wouldn’t float away, cars were turned on their side due to the heavy force of the water. It was incredible.  Please pray for our brothers and sisters as they work to clean up their homes as well as be a light to unbelieving family and neighbors. Pray also for our Baptist leadership as we begin to make decisions about how to help with the recovery process.

I heard a lady comment today, “We won’t have a Good Night this year (meaning Christmas Eve- what she was saying was there won’t be a “merry” Christmas.)  I thought about that and understand why she said it- folks are reeling from the loss and Christmas is just a few weeks away. But let’s pray that this year, we will have the Best Christmas ever- as we recognize the amazing Love that brought our Savior to live among us and share our trials and tribulations.  And best of all, conquer that which keeps us enslaved and far from a right relationship with God. Pray for our churches and our believing brothers and sisters to be a tremendous witness in the next days and weeks so that this will indeed be a “Noche buena” (Merry Christmas).

Below is a press release…
 

SANTIAGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - Tropical Storm Olga triggered floods and landslides in this Caribbean nation Wednesday, killing at least eight people in the Dominican Republic and in Puerto Rico and forcing thousands to flee their homes.

Hardest hit was the northern Dominican province of Santiago, where heavy rains forced authorities to release water from a near-capacity dam into the already swollen Yaque River. The provincial governor said at least seven towns were completely flooded.

People complained on local radio that they were not warned of the water release from the dam, and officials acknowledged it might have caused some of the deaths.

“We have an emergency situation. It’s a catastrophe,” Gov. Jose Izquierdo said.

(AP) A woman looks at the river Haina during the rains caused by the tropical Storm Olga in Santo… Full Image

Dominican Attorney General Radhames Jimenez said at least seven people were killed and 5,000 evacuated. The storm was also blamed for one death in Puerto Rico, where a rain-triggered avalanche buried an SUV.

Families living along the banks of the swollen Yuna River near Santiago were evacuating, placing mattresses atop their heads, and climbing aboard motorcycles headed toward higher ground. Televisions and small ovens were stacked outside humble wooden homes, ready to be moved. Trucks carrying soldiers headed toward Santiago province.

As heavy rains began to overwhelm the Tavera Dam, outside Santiago, the country’s second-largest city, officials gave the order to begin releasing millions of gallons per second into the river, said Ismael Matias, planning chief of the Dominican emergency operations center.

Local authorities had warned repeatedly that a release was possible during the storm and told people to evacuate areas in the path of floodwaters rising as high as 66 feet above normal, Matias said. It was unclear if the warnings were heeded or even relayed.

“Perhaps some people did not believe that the water was going to come and they stayed, that’s possible,” Matias told The Associated Press.