You Must Remember This

Buenas Tardes.

According to an online weather report, we have been in the middle of a water vapor loop.

It has been raining since Friday. We have had light rain and very heavy rain. We have had a few brief moments when we thought we saw blue sky, only to have it darken up again and rain heavily.

The sun has been out for about half an hour now, but as I write, the temperature has dropped and the sky is darkening again in every direction. The online weather station says we are still in the loop...................

An Alamos resident reported four inches on her rain gauge and someone else called us and reported six.

Our gauge says FULL at seven and who knows what slipped over the top and onto the ground.

I am here to report that it was a HECK OF ALOT OF RAIN...........................


Now I know you must remember this.............. Hurricane Norbert, a year ago, on October 11. This is not a Norbert by any means, of course, but it is still alarming and worriesome to many people.



When we came home last night, I heard a very familiar sound that I really did not plan on hearing ever again.............the sound of rushing water and large knocking or banging. With a knot in my stomach, and in the pouring rain, Senor and Culver and Jenny and I walked to the Chalaton Arroyo. I already knew what would be there.


This morning I was up before daybreak and up at the Chalaton Arroyo. These are the pictures I took.

Below, I am looking down my street. Water is pouring down my street and every street in town.

The Chalaton is uphill and behind me.

At the arroyo water is rushing and I can see the small boulders and rocks that were banging and knocking as they tumbled along in the night.

The sign to the left is for a small grocery store called Pinney's. The store was hit hard during Norbert, but in this tropical depression called Olaf, it appears okay. The bulldozers came out after I took these photos and widened the sides of the arroyo. This prevented the water from coming around and destroying Pinney's again and actually increased the current at the main Chalaton Arroya crossing.

There appeared to be a medical emergency across the water, somewhere in the barrio. Ambulances and Policia were abundant, but after much yelling across the roaring water, the emergency seemed to take care of itself and everyone left.

If you look very closely you can see people are standing on the small footbridge that was partially destroyed during Norbert. The bridge is accesible from the Chalaton, but cannot be reached in this water from the other side. Below is another view of the arroyo and the footbridge. The water is trying to come around to Pinney's front door, but it will not make it.
Below another road leads to the Chalaton Arroyo and the water continues on, where it will meet the Arroyo Aduana.

This is the water as it flows at the end of that street.

In town, I am walking on Juarez to go and see the Aduana Arroyo. Water spills everywhere, draining from the insides of many courtyards. Other than the sound of water, the streets are quiet.

Up on the new arched walkways, I look both ways to see the large Aduana. The streets are blocked off and no one can drive across, but the new bridges are such an advantage and people are beginning to come across now to town and go to work like they would on any other day. I see a woman I know and she tells me that there is no school today.

And below, the clean up begins.

After breakfast with Culver and Jenny, the four of us walk back to the Chalaton. The situation there has not changed much, but more people are out looking at the water. The tortilla truck and the new loud Yaqui milk truck come up to try and cross. neither of them gets very close to the water. A man tries to throw a black bag across the rushing water to someone on the bridge. It floats downstream.


The man below has tried twice to cross the water, but turns back each time.Finally a younger man comes along and together, they cross.Our walk took us by DIF, where trucks and dozers were lined up, ready to work if needed. A friend from DIF came out to greet me. There are no big problems................. she said..........we are very lucky.

There was loud music playing from a radio inside DIF. People were outside, just sitting around chatting........................last night I dreamed I was cooking eggs there....................do you need help............i asked............she gave me a little kiss on the cheek and shoved me toward the street..........okay, then, bye, i said......................... and she laughed at me. Over at Barrio de La Capilla, the road has been washed out. You can see it way below. This is where the huge bridge washed out in Norbert. The concrete edge in the lower left is about a thirty foot drop straight down into the water.

The water flows on through the Aduana Arroyo to meet the Chalaton, beyond the church. Later this afternoon I plan to go there and have a look, but I asked about it at DIF and she assured me that the bulldozer widened arroyos could handle the water.

So as I write, the rain has started again and Jenny and I are off soon to look for rain ponchos. We think this water vapor loop may decide to follow us to the Copper Canyon on Wednesday.

I will try and post photos of the meeting of the two arroyos manana.

Alamos appears fine, from what I have seen and heard............

The arroyos have been finally reopened to vehicle traffic, but the Chalaton Barrio remains closed off because the water there is too fast and deep. All houses on both sides look fine, just very wet. There is water in all the small arroyos in the Guayaparine and Esmeralda barrios. There is deep water in the small arroyo that has to be crossed to get to the Pantheon and Mirador. We tried and had to turn back.............tomorrow we might try again and perhaps all the water will be gone..............

I hear alot of music coming from different places in town. I hear kids riding their bikes out on our street and dogs are barking and the burro is very loud and a group of guys are playing basketball over at the miner's house and all seems normal, I guess.

We are just very wet..............Linda Lou