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2005
2005
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I know I said goodbye to you all as I was no longer traveling, but here is an update on the situation here
in the Yucatan after Category 5 Hurricane Dean blew through here. Ground Zero for Dean in the early
morning hours of August 21st was very near Majahual on the Caribbean due east of Chetumal. The
Chetumal area suffered extremely high winds (in the range of 140 mph) but very little rain. It took the
storm approximately 4 hours for the worst of it to pass, unlike Hurricane Wilma in 2005 which hung out in
the Cancun area for 72 hours and caused widespread flooding and terrible damage.
The eye of Hurricane Dean passed slightly to the north of Chetumal, but the damage at Maricasa is
astounding. What was once a beautiful piece of property looks really ugly now. There are a few trees left
standing and a few whose roots are not torn out of the ground and can be pruned and will grow again,
but everything else is flattened or on a crazy tilt. The new house that is in progress was not damaged at
all...the pond is buried with fallen trees and filled with mud. It was shocking to see. Believe me I had a
good cry over it all.
Today is August 24th The situation as of last night was that electricity is slowly being turned back on in
Chetumal and Calderitas. People are busily working to get their homes back in order. Some lost roofs,
some lost parts of their houses where trees fell on them, and some had some minimal water damage.
Houses made of concrete had no damage. Houses with sheetmetal roofing lost the sheetmetal. Buildings
with roof thatch made of huano lost some parts of the roofing, but buildings with grass thatch look like
they need their hair combed but fared really well.
My friends in Xcalak returned to their properties to discover that they had not lost everything as they
had feared. Xcalak is 40 miles south of Majahual on a narrow sand spit and is the southeasternmost
settlement in Mexico.
I cannot get the motorhome back on the property yet because there is a large tree that has created a
tunnel over the main road so am camped at the RV park. The tunnel is tall enough for regular vehicles
but not high enough for the motorhome. Being here at the RV park has given me hope for the future as I
watch them prune back the palms, dig holes and replant the smaller ones and tip some of them upright
and support them with branches. We will do the same at Maricasa.
I had moved my boat to higher ground and it was lashed to a tree that was toppled and so was the rhino.
I can't move them yet, but neither of them was damaged though the trailer is not looking too happy
underneath the boat...that is pretty unbelievable.
Karen, a visitor from the US, has delayed her return to the States in order to provide some moral
support while I hire a crew to start cleaning up the mess. They began working yesterday and have made
great progress. The construction crew helped Pablo clear the road in to the property and the area
around the new house 2 days ago and they continued work on the house starting yesterday. The
architect and I are going to have a conversation about the planned grass roof.
in the Yucatan after Category 5 Hurricane Dean blew through here. Ground Zero for Dean in the early
morning hours of August 21st was very near Majahual on the Caribbean due east of Chetumal. The
Chetumal area suffered extremely high winds (in the range of 140 mph) but very little rain. It took the
storm approximately 4 hours for the worst of it to pass, unlike Hurricane Wilma in 2005 which hung out in
the Cancun area for 72 hours and caused widespread flooding and terrible damage.
The eye of Hurricane Dean passed slightly to the north of Chetumal, but the damage at Maricasa is
astounding. What was once a beautiful piece of property looks really ugly now. There are a few trees left
standing and a few whose roots are not torn out of the ground and can be pruned and will grow again,
but everything else is flattened or on a crazy tilt. The new house that is in progress was not damaged at
all...the pond is buried with fallen trees and filled with mud. It was shocking to see. Believe me I had a
good cry over it all.
Today is August 24th The situation as of last night was that electricity is slowly being turned back on in
Chetumal and Calderitas. People are busily working to get their homes back in order. Some lost roofs,
some lost parts of their houses where trees fell on them, and some had some minimal water damage.
Houses made of concrete had no damage. Houses with sheetmetal roofing lost the sheetmetal. Buildings
with roof thatch made of huano lost some parts of the roofing, but buildings with grass thatch look like
they need their hair combed but fared really well.
My friends in Xcalak returned to their properties to discover that they had not lost everything as they
had feared. Xcalak is 40 miles south of Majahual on a narrow sand spit and is the southeasternmost
settlement in Mexico.
I cannot get the motorhome back on the property yet because there is a large tree that has created a
tunnel over the main road so am camped at the RV park. The tunnel is tall enough for regular vehicles
but not high enough for the motorhome. Being here at the RV park has given me hope for the future as I
watch them prune back the palms, dig holes and replant the smaller ones and tip some of them upright
and support them with branches. We will do the same at Maricasa.
I had moved my boat to higher ground and it was lashed to a tree that was toppled and so was the rhino.
I can't move them yet, but neither of them was damaged though the trailer is not looking too happy
underneath the boat...that is pretty unbelievable.
Karen, a visitor from the US, has delayed her return to the States in order to provide some moral
support while I hire a crew to start cleaning up the mess. They began working yesterday and have made
great progress. The construction crew helped Pablo clear the road in to the property and the area
around the new house 2 days ago and they continued work on the house starting yesterday. The
architect and I are going to have a conversation about the planned grass roof.
2007 August
Life's Adventures