Hurricane Ida

Lots of people have been asking us about Hurricane Ida, which passed through Nicaragua last Thursday and Friday. The western side of Nicaragua, the CDCA and all our projects are fine. The Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua was hit hard again, just two years after the devastating Hurricane Felix. Quantifying the damage is hard, numbers of people and houses affected change depending on the source. As far as I can tell (it’s taken a lot of sorting out), there have been no reported deaths. Here’s what has been reported in the Nicaraguan news:

Reported in today’s El Nuevo Diario:

There are 29,000 people affected by the hurricane in the Northern Autonomous Atlantic Region (RAAN). In the RAAN several thousand people are still in emergency shelters unable to return to their homes. The Kukalaya and Bambana rivers have begun to recede, but houses are filled with mud and many are still flooded.

In the RAAS it is reported that more than 23,000 people lost their homes. The World Food Program is also reporting 300 wells contaminated, 300 latrines caved in and nearly 14,000 acres of crops destroyed in the affected areas.

La Prensa reported heavy crop damage in the RAAS: all the staple food crops of rice, beans and tubers. Other food and cash crops affected include the entire pineapple crop. With 75 mile an hour winds, the fruit trees were destroyed, other trees were left standing, but with their tops and branches blown off; the only trees unaffected were pine trees.

Fishermen lost 7,000 nets during the storm. Countless horses, cattle, pigs, and chickens were also lost. All reported damage will increase as rescue teams continue to evaluate.

Much of the Atlantic Coast still had not recovered after Hurricane Felix two years ago, and now the region is hit again by a hurricane. Still, El Salvador was much harder hit with 124 people dead, 60 missing and 7,000 homeless. Thank you for keeping all those affected by Hurricane Ida in your thoughts and prayers. -- Becca