Tungarahua, the volcano
after which the province I live in is named, erupted violently yesterday
(July 14th) evening and into the night. We were hiking through a ravine
when we heard a very loud boom and then TONS of smoke and ash began
pouring out of the volcano. On our way back up the side of the mountain,
we noticed that lava was beginning to come out of the top. All
throughout our hike back up the eruptions got worse and worse, and the
lava was blasting out of the top high up into the air. It was one of the
most amazing things I have ever seen, however it was hard to appreciate
the beauty because of the destruction it was causing.
(Image from
Volcano
Discovery.com)
Today on the news we were able to see how much damage
was actually done; the towns and villages surrounding Tungarahua were
completely destroyed, and there was so much ash and lava that it reached
as far a the neighboring province called Chimborazo. I am not sure how
many people lost lives due to the eruptions, but thousands of people
lost their land, crops and animals.
Please pray for the people who have lost everything
because of the eruptions of Tungarahua. It is going to take a very long
time for these people to rebuild their lives because they had very
little to begin with and now they are left with absolutely nothing. On
the news, it was reported that the people living in the destroyed towns
have no food and no water and no way of getting any, and there was an
urgent call to the people of Ecuador to come and help as soon as they
can. Please pray that there will be help as soon as possible.
Several of my friends have homes in the areas that were
destroyed and I ask you to pray for their families as well. Thank you so
much for your prayers, they mean so much.
