Eighty-seven years ago, Elena Viamil came into this world just 2 years after the Great Depression. This event resulted in economic hardship all over the world especially for a struggling family like Elena’s. Elena was born and raised in Shipstern; where she learned Spanish, Creole, and Maya as her first and second languages. At the age of 14, Elena married Natividad Verde from Sarteneja, where she gave birth to three wonderful children: Florencia, Christobal and Markitos. They had a wonderful life at Shipstern until tragedy came in the form of a hurricane.
Elena was only 21 years old when Hurricane Janet changed her life forever. Elena told us her sad story with tears running down her eyes. This is her story.
“It was September 27, 1955 when we began to experience torrential rains and winds from as early as in the morning. We didn’t own a radio but we knew that a strong storm was on our way.
After seeing the seriousness of the situation, we decided to travel to Sarteneja to find a shelter for the night. It was late in the afternoon when we began our long journey to safety. The rains and winds picked up by this time, making our journey more difficult. Native was holding Florencia and Cristobal’s hand to help them walk through the stormy evening. I had baby Markitos, he was covered with a quilt and a mosquito net to protect him from the rain.
Our journey to Sarteneja wasn’t easy, there was only a picado road connecting these two communities. We walked through the flooded Savannah; the water levels were rising as we walked. When we reached the edge of the forest we noticed that the picado road to Sarteneja was blocked with fallen trees. The flood waters were now reaching my waist; my kids were now swimming and desperate. The lagoon, savannah and forest became one, like a never ending sea. Sarteneja was too far, our only option was Balthazar Island where the land was a little higher due to an ancient Maya Mound.
We headed to Balthazar, it was also flooded but we knew that the hill was our only safe zone. It was so dark and flooded that it was almost impossible to see where we were heading. We were walking cautiously in flooded forested island trying not to drop in one of the many ancient wells. The wells were impossible to see and locate due to the high flooded waters. It was a wrong move that made me fall in one of our fears. I dropped and my entire body was instantly submerged into the dark muddy waters. My baby was the only motivation to fight to stay afloat. It didn’t take long for Native to notice what was happening, he hurriedly pulled us out. Traumatized by that accident we hurriedly headed to the hill where we found refuge under a huge tree. It was there when I decided to check on my baby, I knew he was wet and I wanted to make sure he was alright.
To my surprise Markitos was missing. My baby was not in the quilt, he must have fallen in the well and he never made it up along with me. Worried and desperate we ran back hoping to find Markitos alive, which was an impossible hope. Janet was hammering us at this time, with its full force, lashing us from various directions. I wanted to go further, but Native didn’t allow me. He grabbed my hand and hugged me together with my kids. The hurricane was at its full force, the kids were terrified and devastated just as we were. We stayed under that tree in the middle of a sea where once an island and hill used to be. We were living the worst nightmare in one of the longest nights of our lives. It was in the morning when the water receded that we found the motionless body of Markitos. He was a few meters away from the flooded well with mud covering his body. We gave him a decent burial and then headed brokenhearted to Sarteneja.
The nightmare wasn’t over; it was the beginning of a painful week. Sarteneja was completely destroyed with the exception of a stone building where the villagers found refuge that night. We also learned that another life was taken by the hurricane; making it two deaths in the Sarteneja Peninsula. The aftermath was the worst I have even seen in my life. For the following days we had to eat green plantain boiled with sea water for several days until help arrived. The village of Shipstern was also abandoned that night, and the hope of returning died as well. As for my family, we decided to join our families here in Sarteneja, the place where we rightfully belong.”
Elena was traumatized by Janet and every time she heard of a hurricane she was the first one to find refuge. Many of her family looked at it as a joke but only she knew what a hurricane was. Through the eyes of Elena, hurricanes were monsters that caused her to lose her precious five months old baby.
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