Puerto Rico is quaking
If you have not been paying attention, I do not blame you. There have been so many weather stories lately that it is hard to focus. The news is overwhelming. Most people get stuck on one news source they like and that is all they look at. We are all guilty of it. I do it too. But if that one news source has limited time or resources, stories get missed. It seems to me that we only have time for one major weather story at a time. With winter storm Isaiah, and the Australia fires, only people with ties to Puerto Rico seem to be paying attention to what is happening down there. I read today a volcano eruption is eminent in The Philippines. Weather stories are exhausting us all, and I fear it is only going to get worse. But people need to know Puerto Rico has been quaking for 16 days and counting.
Well, the earthquake swarm (as it is apparently called) is worse than Maria.
Did you read that? Yes, 950 earthquakes so far this year. I am not even sure they are counting the ones that happened after Christmas. It is a bizarre and terrifying phenomenon that has everyone’s nerves frayed. Physically speaking my family is fine, their houses are still standing. We are lucky in that sense. However, I am not sure any of them will get to sleep the whole night through for a long time.
As most of you know, I grew up on the island and we were told in school that we were on a fault line and we were prone to earthquakes. I remember more than one. The one that I remember best was a 3 something that happened in the late 80s, early 90s. It shook the house pretty good. In fact, there was a crack in the back room’s concrete after that. I was cleaning the mirror on my dresser and I will never forget watching it shake and the feeling that it would fall on me. In the last 2 weeks my family and friends have been through hundreds of those little shakes, and many stronger. Gulp. We have never seen anything like it. Which begs the question: why?
I know I have Geologist friends out there, and I do not want to put any of them on the spot, but I really want someone to give me an example of where this has happened before. I am serious! I keep searching for answers and I cannot find them. These articles shed some light on the science behind it all, but it is hard to believe that we are the only ones who have been through this. How can we possibly know how long it will last if we have nothing to compare it to? Again, maybe my news sources are insufficient. I need some help here.
We know the earth is always moving. People who live in places like California can tell you small quakes happen all the time. I went to the USGS map to see if it was happening anywhere else. Bear with me and go click on this link. You will see the world and the dots of where seismic activity is occurring or has occurred recently. The bigger and darker the dot shows the bigger and the more frequent. As you zoom in you will see all the quakes in Puerto Rico and on the side a list of dates, places and times. It took my breathe away. Seriously. It was audible… the gasp, I made could be heard if you were in the room with me.
Here is the link. If you care to go see for yourself:
Now I want you to imagine how it would be like to live like this.
Monday January 6th is Three Kings Day, a major holiday for us. That is when Punta Ventana broke. It had been shaking since late December and I believe that was a 5.8 so we all thought that was the big one. Until the 6.4 hit a couple of days after and the María PTSD set in for everyone. No power throughout the island... No water... People sleeping outside... What is happening?! Slowly the power started coming back and everyone felt like we were getting back to normal, but it keeps quaking. We keep saying “It’s normal, it’s just aftershocks”. But it is not because the intensity is not going down, it is zig-zaging and it is a cruel form of terrorism. What I mean is there has been at least 5 earthquakes in a weeks’ time of above 5 intensity, and hundreds of shock between them that go from barely felt to 4 something.
The houses in Puerto Rico are built mostly of concrete because we have frequent hurricanes and so they are built to withstand strong winds. Would you feel comfortable sleeping under a concrete roof when the earth is shaking this hard at all hours? What if you have a two story home? Do you sleep upstairs so the roof does not collapse on you ? Or on the first floor so you can get outside quicker? People have been sleeping in their cars outside their home. No one leaves their car in the car port anymore because God forbid the roof collapses on the car and then you do not have a car either. I see on Facebook everyday. Friends sleeping on the terrace on a hammock and hoping for the best. People in the car. In a tent in the front yard. Friends telling me they slept on the couch so they would be closer to the door. My 89 year old aunt spending the night with my parents because she lives alone and is scared to spend the night alone. Churches enlisting young folks to stay with elderly folks who may not have a family member to stay with them. It is heart wrenching.
My people have been through a lot. The economic crisis, Irma, Maria. Every time we think we are getting on our feet and digging ourselves out of this awful hole we get punched again. Except this feels like you are constantly being smacked with a hard uppercut punch every few slaps. People who would never talk about leaving the island are now saying they might. Airlines have raised their fees in the most shameful price gouging I have ever heard. My brother said he saw a flight for $2,000 this week. It is usually in the $300-$500 range. It is insanity. Someone compared it to living in a war zone, because you go to bed wondering if this is the night the bomb hots your house. No one is sleeping, at least not well. Power is returning slowly and people are getting back to normal until it starts shaking again and the power goes away and we are back to square one. One of my cousins said he doesn’t set his alarm anymore because he will be awoken before 4 am guaranteed. The quote I see most on social media is “Esto no es vida” (This is no way to live).
I want to say, in the face of all this I have heard a lot of good spirits and humor coming from the island. We got a great sense of humor and we joke about it all. You know what they say, if you don't laugh you will start to cry.
The worst part is the impotence we all feel. At this point there is little to do and seemingly no one to blame. What I do not understand is why the media doesn’t seem to care. Sure, there are a few articles here or there online but I watch a lot of news and I have to seek it to find it. There is no telethon, no movement on how to help. Other than CBS’s David Begnaud (God bless that man) few news people in the states care. The President signed an emergency declaration and I think only the Puerto Rican media covered it.
Here is the list of the earthquakes felt today and yesterday:
You want to help, I know you do. Thoughts and prayers are good. Empathy is important. Be patient with your Puerto Rican friends, we are living under collective anxiety. Charity organizations are out there helping right now. Here is an article with links to people who have people down there helping:
Most importantly do not close your eyes. When the small headline show up on your phone “another earthquake shakes Puerto Rico” click on it. Apathy helps no one. The media doesn’t report it because they think you do not care. Care! That is what you can do: CARE.
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