Tropical Storm Wreaks Havoc in Gales Point and Belize

Two tropical storms hit Belize days ago to cause more flooding and more damage than any hurricane has caused. I heard it being reported as the worst natural disaster for Belize in recent history. Many are stranded, some have died others have been relocated. All the rice fields have been washed out and apparently food supply is very low. As for Gales Point, this small village was one of the worst hit. Because ti is only inches above "lagoon/sea level" as the waters rose and rain fell, the land basically became engulfed into the sea/lagoon. I was trying to post an aerial photo on here of what it normally looks like and what it looked like Monday- but I'm not sure I can get it up.

Below I have photos sent from Mandy, one of the school teachers who is serving down there and lives at the base with Basil and Vera. The first one is the "backyard" of the mission base.



This photo is of the path between the lagoon and the mission base (the path you need to travel to get to the boat to get to the base) Some of you avid supporters may remmeber seeing Mike and I wade thru this path on one of our previous trips. For us, it was about mid calve in depth....this time, it came up to Mandy's shoulders...that'd be about 5 feet.

The end of the path where it meets the lagoon. This was taken on Sunday- before the previous photo. Here, Carol and Mandy begin their hike back to the base.

Vera has told me that many of the villagers are unable to live in their homes at this time. They are staying in the church or the hurricane shelter until they can leave. I read on my own that the government does have boats stationed in the lagoon to evacuate people should there be another swell. I haven't verified if this is true or not, but I assume it is. Until we know more, the best thing we can do is pray. If you want to send support to help aid in providing food and clothing and blankets, please email us at prayhard@tds.net and we'll let you know where to send it.