It's Senor J. Salas's fault. He stood in the Marina Seca office and said they needed rain. "Don't worry about the wind. It won't be much. But if we don't get rain, things will be bad around here."
They got rain. And things are very bad around there.
We weren't there for the downpour, but Michael drove back to San Carlos after seeing me off for a visit to son Joshua in San Antonio and then home to Sleepy Creek. Friday night he found the road out and had to sleep in the rental car. By Saturday morning, they'd fashioned a temporary detour that allowed him to get part way into town, then, finally, to the apartment we're renting until Sea Venture is in the water again.
There is still no showering/flushing water in San Carlos. The electricity finally came on yesterday, but it's sporadic. Not enough to run an air conditioner. Boats that were on moorings are now up on the beach. And Marina Seca is a mess.
Here are some photographs that tell the story. Fortunately, Sea Venture was on a trailer and stands, but with rain that didn't stop for 36 hours and dropped 21 inches on land that couldn't handle it, the mudslides and mess were inevitable. Michael reports that the Marina Seca folk are working non-stop to get things back together. The gate and guard house washed away, but patrols are keeping those who don't belong at bay; they won't even allow Michael to drive in to pump out SV and to dry her innards. He slogs through the mud twice a day, trying to pump the bilges on a boat that sits bow down, trying to dry the mattress and keep mold from growing. The marina office flooded, drowning computers. Boats on trailers slipped and slid into each other, but they've just about gotten these straightened and back in place. They say that none were structurally damaged, which has to be good news for the owners. The marina folk are pumping water out of boats. It will be a long time before they get to Sea Venture's decks and rudder. Mud swallows feet and shoes for bootless folk roaming the area. And they say it may be weeks before running water is restored. Pray, please, that it doesn't rain any more so that all these boats can dry out.
If we'd been in the water, our generator would keep Sea Venture drained and cool. Bad timing. Really bad timing. I suppose the Marina Seca folk couldn't imagine this happening, but I wish they had. At least they kept SV on the trailer so she didn't slip away. Only her dinghies did. We don't yet know how much damage they sustained.
I will be on the East Coast longer than planned, obviously. But poor Michael is there, coping. Being the MAN.
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