The Big Storm

As we transition from the dry season to the rainy season, there are often severe storms. Wednesday evening brought one of the worst we had seen. 

Stephen and I had gone to our usual Wednesday mission team meeting, which begins at 4:00 pm.  Some members of our team were running a little late, so we were just sitting around chatting, waiting for the meeting to start.

A big branch in our front yard

Suddenly, the wind and rain started, and it quickly became apparent that the water was not going to stay outside the building.  The six of us who were there immediately got to work, closing the window shutters and trying to check for any leaks.

No chainsaws!  The branches have to be cut to smaller pieces with a machete so they can be carted away.

The rain blew the roof of part of the building, and water was streaming in through the ceiling, the windows, and under the doors.  We were pretty busy fighting the inundation!  Someone even climbed up on the roof in the rain to replace the tin that had blown to the side.

The kids were home alone, on the other side of the compound from us.  We were hoping that they were able to close the windows and keep things dry at our house.

In front of the surgery building.

Those who were running late to the meeting had to drive past big branches and around puddles in the road.  They had a nerve wracking drive.

By the time our meeting ended, it was beginning to grow dark outside.  We didn't really see the complete damage until the next morning.  All around the hospital, there were fallen branches and sticks.

The back of our house.  There were various size branches all over our yard.

But in spite of everything that happened, there was no major damage to any of our structures or vehicles.  At our house, Isabelle was able to organize the kids to close the windows, and cover the desks with blankets.

The past two days our grounds crew has been hard at work cleaning up the aftermath of the storm.  I was impressed by how much they were able to accomplish in just one day.  Things look so much better already.

This branch was in front of the surgical building.