14 March 2011
Reports continue to come in from our colleagues in Galapagos. Below is a letter from the director of the Charles Darwin Research Station, which describes some of the damage caused by the tsunami of March 11, 2011.
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The tsunami waves were far more intense than during last year’s tsunami alert. Wave amplitude at Santa Cruz was 1.77 meters (nearly 6 ft) and the arrival time of the tsunami waves coincided with the high tide. It proved a destructive mix.
The Biomar Building at the Charles Darwin Research Station suffered serious damage in Friday’s tsunami. Clean-up has already begun in this photo from the station’s Director, J. Gabriel Lopez.
The waves at intervals of 26 minutes reached to 1.40m above the level of the Biomar pier. The CDF Marine Sciences (Biomar) building suffered considerable damage to its first floor installations which includes the laboratories. The waves completely destroyed a concrete pump house and broke massive wooden doors, flooding laboratories, workshops, and storage facilities, scattering furniture and equipment despite advance emergency preparation prior to evacuating the premises. Oxygen tanks and other equipment were widely scattered and found buried in sand and vegetation as far as 200m away
Other low-lying areas of the Station were spared. Seawater came very close to entering the directors house — right to the edge of the veranda and around the eastern side of the house within a few centimeters. Large piles of debris blocking parts of the path to the house and the front garden. The A frame house was spared. The duplex house near the Station beach suffered modest damage to the wash room and surroundings.
It was a challenging Friday night as electricity was out and phone communications were difficult or nonexistent.
Electricity and water was restored to the Station by late-morning Saturday. Everyone is safe but a bit battered by the experience.
Our staff has again performed admirably and mingas (voluntary work parties) were organized to clean up at Biomar and where needed.
The Finch Bay Hotel and the destruction to it’s boardwalk.
The low-lying areas of town also suffered significant damage. Scuba Iguana, Red Mangrove hotel, Banco del Pacifico and the area around the Parque San Francisco in particular. The Hotel Finch Bay on the western side of the Bay was heavily damaged; the lobby filled with more than a meter of seawater. The board walk along the beach completely ripped out.
Reports from the Park indicate that their dock suffered damage.
With regard to the flora and fauna, the impacts are being assessed. According to Galapagos National Park reports, some marine turtle nests at Garrapatero Beach on Santa Cruz were destroyed. We had significant damage to the vegetation along the shore of the Research Station. The marine iguana nests that we have been monitoring within the area around my home seem fine. We will be learning more in the next day or so on the full extent of the damage.
Dr. J. Gabriel Lopez
Executive Director
Charles Darwin Foundation
