Thousands flee Mitch, Belize is spared

Pictorials coming in a few minutes

As we see the images of the devastation in Honduras and Nicaragua, Belizeans all across the country are thanking God we were spared from the full fury of Hurricane Mitch. But it was a week of fear and disruption nevertheless. Most of us based our decision to move to higher ground when The Weather Channel stunned us all with the announcement that Mitch was not heading north as predicted by the computer models, but due west, right towards Belize. People immediately took action, buying plywood and boarding up store fronts and windows on their homes. Even though the younger folks had not lived through Hattie in 1961, they remembered the stories of their elders, and on Tuesday they packed up the kids and took to the road in cars and buses. Long lines formed at gas stations across the city and then folks began the trek west, or north or anywhere they could beg lodging or find a building sturdy enough to become a shelter. It was a slow and wet convoy, with everyone keeping a watchful eye on the Cayo District’s flood prone rivers. All the city folks could think about was being stranded and cut off from Belize City when it was time to return home, but there was no turning back. Shelters in Belmopan filled up early but San Ignacio and Benque welcomed as many as they could. Food presented a problem early on, however, as shelter after shelter appealed over the radio to anyone who could help with provisions. On Wednesday people got fed up with uncomfortable conditions and began to move back to the city, ahead of the all clear sign given by the National Emergency Management Organization later that morning. Today people waded through the southside streets trying to get their homes and their lives back to normal. Some homes, which had been spared from wind damage, still may get water inside. School children were a little late because of the water and some schools have still to reopen. City residents might have complained about flooded streets in the past, but considering that there may not have been any streets left at all if Mitch had had his way, today even wading in water up your knees is cause for celebration.