After Hurricane Eta, and again after Hurricane Iota we checked in with our local community and neighbours. Luckily no lives were lost but many homes were damaged, and most were without supplies because all the bridges were washed out. We called upon our friends and family and gathered donations. We sent the money through to Lester, our property manager, who bought lots of food. Using our trusty Land Cruiser, he was able to cross the rivers and made food deliveries to as many people as he could.
Hurricane Eta was a devastating Category 4 hurricane that wreaked havoc across Central America. It touched down on the east coast of Nicaragua on November 3rd, 2020. It was the 3rd most intense November Atlantic hurricane on record (the largest was in 1932). The second most intense hurricane was Iota, classified as a Category 5 hurricane, that touched down only two weeks later in the exact same location. Eta and Iota made landfall near Puerto Cabezas on the eastern seaboard and then both meandered across Nicaragua.
Our vacation home in Mira Flores, is situated on the estuary where Rio Mira Flores and the Pacific Ocean meet. We experienced massive rainfall, high winds, and extreme flooding. Essentially, the river was a torrent. The water rose 10' while widening out at the river mouth and gorging out 120 feet of our river waterfront. We lost over an acre of property into the ocean. Our house now overhangs the new river alignment and our pool is sitting askew on the river bottom.
On the bright side, as there must always be a bright side, we now have a truly spectacular view of the river and ocean. But, we must work for it to get it back.
