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Ecuador earthquake

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Vinny

Vinny

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A few of you might of seen news of the devastating earthquake at the coastal areas of Ecuador.
I grew up there and visit family often . When I go I always travel around the area to also make it a vacation.
My friends have gone with me many times. The country is beautiful and the people giving.
I have also traveled by motorcycle thru the country . When I go I always rent from Freedom Bike rentals. An American and a French own it. They are riders that decided to open a business, and manage it that way.
Anyway, they have decided to help an area that we usually ride to at the coast. It's called Canoa. Most of the news and assistance has been focused on the larger towns , so they have decided to drive their 4x4 truck there and help as much as they can.
I'm placing the paragraph they sent to previous clients here. I have donated and thought some of you might feel inclined to do so also.


PLEASE HELP US FILL THIS TRUCK.

Right now there are very few routes available to get to Canoa on the beach. We know our new 4X4 truck can make it there.

Help us fill it with supplies - tents, food, water filtration systems, diapers, medications, lanterns, sheets, etc.

We will fill this truck and return to Canoa tomorrow to bring support directly to the community that has been hard-hit by Saturday's tragic earthquake.

You may make donations directly to our paypal account reservations@freedombikerental.com We guarantee that 100% of your donations will go directly to providing supplies to the people of Canoa Beach.

If you are in Quito, please bring donations of lanterns, non-perishable food, tents, water filters, etc to our office in the Mariscal. Please contact us if you have any questions.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT


Look up Ecuador earthquake on Google and you can become more aware of the destruction .

I hope to lead a TWT ride there with 6 riders next year. My brother and I would make the plans and place them on TWT. Of course we will be renting from Freedom.
Look up their website if you have a minute.
They have modern bikes and great choices on routes thru Ecuador. Of course you want to wait a few months or until late next year before going to Ecuador. They will be recuperating for a while.

Thanks. Vinny.
 
Thanks Vinny for posting this! I visited Guayaquil several years ago during a brief hiking trip to the region. I felt totally at home with the kind and gracious people of Ecuador.

I'll send a donation soon.

Best Wishes,

Fred
 
Manuel Quizhpe April 19, 2016 17:10 This Wednesday April 20, 2016 , at 5:00 , 26 Azuay motorcyclists will go destined to Canoa , Jama and Matal , in Manabi . There, with their bikes, they participate in volunteer work after the earthquake. Its mission will be transported to the paramedics and lifeguards along the roads where vehicles can not pass. The pilots, most are practitioners mode enduro .

The call by Cesar Padilla , manager of Amateur magazine and organizer of motorcycle competitions, exceeded expectations. Through social networks was announced that there are no quotas for more volunteers. Padilla, on the wall of Facebook , wrote: "Dear friends, I want to acknowledge the enormous support he has had the call for volunteers enduro to transport aid workers and specialists to areas where vehicles can not pass. "
A truck Honda help with the transfer of the bikes to the nearest point to inaccessible areas. According to the provisions, collaboration will be Wednesday , Thursday and Friday . The return will be this Saturday , at 05:00.
Pilots were suggested taking two helmets , camping equipment , tent , suitable clothing , flashlight , insect repellent , first aid kit and money for food. Among the volunteers are enduro Miguel Angel Armijo , Daniel Garcia , Hugo Peralta , Esteban Moscoso , Gonzalo Support ... It was learned that a group of motorcyclists pichinchanos , led by Ricardo Rocco , also due out Thursday April 21 from the Tribuna de los Shyris (Quito) bound for Chone . There will collaborate on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. On Sunday they will return to Quito .
 
It's great to see in many news stories and online that Ecuadorians aren't waiting for help from the government , they are helping each other gather supplies and using heavy machinery that is available to find trapped people .
 
Good idea the donation!I'll do it with paypal right now.
 
Donation sent.

We've been looking at Ecuador as a place to spend some time this summer... what a devastating earthquake.
 
Many countries have sent assistance, Colombia has done the most. People are still getting rescued alive after 3 days of being trapped.
They actually asked for volunteers to stop coming to the region since too much physical help has arrived. The need is for food, temporary shelter and water.
A huge problem is that the current President spent too much too fast in the last 6 years. Then oil prices fell and the earthquake happened. He looks great to the people that benefited from his shortsighted approach to finances.
Ecuador has a long road ahead. Thanks for your concerns, it's great to have a community that feels for its members.
My family and friends mostly live in the mountain areas are didn't receive any physical damage. The shocks in their area were frightening more than anything.
The citizens of Ecuador are uniting in something that reminds me of how the USA dealt with 9/11.
 
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Cool story I came across :


5:57 p.m.
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David Gaus
David Gaus
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Wisconsin doctor's hospital on the front lines in Ecuador
By Mark Johnson of the Journal Sentinel

Megan Beck was alone in a work room at her hospital in Santo Domingo, Ecuador, when the walls began to move. It was about 7 Saturday evening, and the 26-year-old Milwaukee medical student thought it was only strong winds from one of the thunderstorms that had been pushing through the city.

Then she noticed the floor moving. The furniture, too. A ceiling light crashed to the floor beside her.

Beck scrambled under a table and waited for what felt like a long time.

Fortunately, no one was hurt at Hospital Hesburgh. But within a day, Beck began to see victims of Ecuador's 7.8 magnitude earthquake.

"We began receiving a number of patients arriving in any way possible: cars, ambulances, mattresses, motorcycles, you name it," Beck said.

"Everyone has been working around the clock... the concept of shift work has since disappeared."

The hospital and a second one in the administrative area of Pedro Vicente Maldonado are mainly staffed by Ecuadorians but owe their existence to a 54-year-old Madison doctor named David Gaus.

A family practice physician who lived in Ecuador for 15 years, Gaus founded the private nonprofit Andean Health & Development project to improve rural health care in Ecuador by providing high quality medical care and training.

Saturday's earthquake has put those goals to the test.

"Both hospitals are right on the edge of the area hardest hit by the earthquake," said Gaus, who serves as executive director for the project. He said the two hospitals suffered minor cracks to their floor tiles but escaped any structural damage.

Building collapses throughout the country have caused the crush injuries that the hospitals have seen in abundance since the earthquake. Medical staff at Hospital Hesburgh have been treating fractures, spinal cord injuries, facial bone fractures and hemothorax (blood inside the chest cavity), Beck said.

She retold the story of one of the injured, a 21-year-old mother who had been in church Saturday when the earthquake struck.

"As soon as it began, she jumped to cover her daughter and as a result suffered significant trauma to her spine," Beck said. "She has multiple fractures in her cervical spine and will require significant rehabilitation to recover.... She's just so young and she was only trying to protect her daughter, yet this could affect the rest of her life, depending on how she heals."

On Monday, Gaus will fly to Ecuador to coordinate medical supplies for the hospitals and to treat patients.

The story of how this Wisconsin resident came to establish hospitals in Ecuador begins with a realization he came to at the age of 21 while an undergraduate at Notre Dame. Gaus decided he no longer wanted to be an accountant. He wanted instead to do volunteer work.

A priest Gaus met while at Marquette University High School suggested a project in Quito, Ecuador, called Working Boys Center. The center helps children in impoverished neighborhoods, and it transformed Gaus.

"I would get up at 5 in the morning, make breakfast, teach school during the day (English, social studies, business). At night, I'd teach boxing, and come home absolutely exhausted," he said. "I was exhausted but I felt like I'd done something useful at the end of the day."

After his stint at Working Boys Center, Gaus went to medical school at Tulane University in New Orleans. He specialized in family medicine and received a master's in public health and tropical medicine.

In 1996, he started Andean Health & Development, and the following year he moved back to Ecuador. He spent years raising money for the first 17-bed hospital, which opened in 2000 and became financially self-sustaining in 2007. In 2014, the 60-bed Hospital Hesburgh opened. The two hospitals not only treat patients but have also become involved in training Ecuadorean doctors.

Gaus said that since the earthquake the hospitals have been in need of catheters, materials for casts, antibiotics, Ace bandages, surgical tape and supplies for arthroscopic surgeries.

On Monday, when he boards the plane for Ecuador, Gaus will bring with him eight pieces of luggage, weighing between 300 and 400 pounds. All of it medical supplies to treat the people of Ecuador.


Mark Johnson covers health and science. He is a Pulitzer Prize winner and three-time finalist.
 
Thanks for bringing this to the group. I wouldn't have known about it otherwise. Donation sent via Paypal.
 
A rescue dog which saved a number of people after the Ecuador earthquake has died.
The Labrador was used to search for survivors after the 7.8 magnitude quake struck off the Ecuadorean coast last week.
At least 655 people died, 48 are still missing and thousands are injured after whole towns were destroyed.
The Ibarra fire department said Dayko died from heatstroke after working to find anyone trapped in rubble.
Dayko the rescue dog
At least 27 countries have sent rescue teams to Ecuador over the past week and 113 people have been rescued alive.
Foreign nationals from the UK, Ireland, Canada, Colombia, Cuba and the Dominican Republic have been confirmed among the dead.
Ecuador's president Rafael Correa said during a visit to the worst-affected region that the cost of rebuilding could be up to $3bn (£2.1bn).
Earthquake zone in Ecuador
It's been reported that Dayko saved around seven people in the rescue effort since last week.
The four-year-old dog had worked with the Ibarra fire department canine unit for the last two-and-a-half years.
Ibarra fire department with their rescue dogs
A post mortem revealed that Dayko died during a medical examination on Friday after a heart attack and acute respiratory failure.
He'd worked in several locations including Ibarra and Pedernales and had national and international certifications.
Dayko the rescue dog
A statement from Ibarra fire department on its Facebook page said: "We regret to inform you that the Ibarra fire service is in mourning because we have lost Dayko, who took part in the search at Pedernales.
"This four legged friend gave his life in the line of duty. Thank you Dayko for your heroic efforts in Pedernales and in various emergencies where you were present.
"You held high the name of the K9 unit."
His handler Alex Yela said: "When Dayko arrived he amazed everyone with his friendly character, but he gradually showed his skills and qualities over time.
"In his life Dayko collaborated in several searches in Esmeraldas, Lita and found a French national who was lost in the Imbabura region.
"He also took part in presentations to children and impressed at canine shows."
Other rescue dogs
 
Thanks for the support. Once out of the news ( which the earthquake didn't even make) the people effected are usually forgotten .
I get updates from my family and friends in the area. The struggle continues.

Don't feel pressured to donate , just keep Ecuador in your minds every once in a while.

I hope every one of you get to ride there at some point , it is not to be missed.
 
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Are the Freedom rental folks posting updates on their efforts anywhere?
 
Tourmeister said:
Are the Freedom rental folks posting updates on their efforts anywhere?
Click to expand...

I haven't see any. I'm sure they have in Facebook but I don't do that. I'll ask my brother to look and post it here. Thanks for reminding me to check on them.
 
Eileen Knowles was sitting comfortably in her house in Ecuador on the night of April 16, when she felt the ground shake.

It was an earthquake. A big one. She started hearing news about people dying near the epicentre. In panic, she called her friend who lives very close to the epicentre. Hours went by, but her friend was okay.

The earthquake was the worst to hit Ecuador in nearly seven decades. As of Saturday, on the country's ravaged Pacific coast, 654 people were killed. In addition, another 16,600 people were injured and close to 7,000 buildings were destroyed, while more than 25,000 people a living in shelters.

Knowles was in shock but knew she had to do something. And her training at McMaster University would come in handy. She started an IndieGogo fundraising campaign. It had a modest goal, just $8,000 USD. It passed that target before the day was done. As of Monday, more than $113,000 had been pledged. There's a new goal now — $500,000.

Knowles was born in Ecuador but moved to Toronto when she was 15. She has recently returned to her birth country to work in the non-profit sector as the Country Director for Global Citizen Year. CBC Hamilton spoke with her about the campaign, how the money will be used and how this became possible because of McMaster University.

Q: What made you start this campaign?

I saw the impact of the earthquake the morning after and my friend suggested to me, 'Hey why don't we start a crowd funding campaign?' and I agreed. I don't have any experience in crowd funding but I wanted to try it out and see what happens. Randomly, we started with an $8,000 goal on IndieGogo and by just the end of the day, we had over $20,000.

We did not walk into this with any kind of strategy or high ambitions. We just thought this was an opportunity to get a little extra money for the people who might need it. It was the overwhelming response, that we got from our friends and networks initially, and then the public at large that made us want to take this more seriously.

How will this money help?

We are giving the money to Red Cross in Ecuador as they have the expertise and the macro vision of what's going on and what the needs are, but we are making sure that the we have visibility in terms of what the needs are and how the money is being spent.

What was your reaction when the campaign raised 14 times more money than you had asked for?

Through this campaign, I have realized the generosity and the care people have for the people in Ecuador. There has been overwhelming response from China, Canada and all over the world and I am very grateful for that. But of course, with this comes a great amount of responsibility and accountability in terms of money. We want to ensure that the people are getting the funds in the best possible way.

Is the money still coming in and what is your next goal?

Yes, we are going to be fundraising for the next 30 days. Now we have a team, we have a strategy, so this is just the beginning. We have now reached out to many more people and organizations like UN Charter and global communities and we are using their network to help us. Many media channels like the Huffington Post are also pitching in by featuring this campaign on their website.

Eileen Knowles
Eileen at a conference to motivate people to volunteer overseas

How did your time at McMaster University influence your work?

My social entrepreneurship and international development career took off early on due to the work I started at McMaster. I graduated in 2007 with a Political Science degree. I became interested in social justice at McMaster, following a trip to India during my 1st year there. The next year I founded SEED Canada, also with McMaster students, a scholarship program for students in Zambia and Kenya.

I also co-chaired the Global Citizenship Conference at Mac, which still exists. My time at Mac marked my commitment to social justice which has been a central pillar in my life.

How are the conditions in Ecuador right now?

The earthquakes haven't stopped. We are really worried because the risk is still there. I have my earthquake backpack ready. Even after 72 hours of the earthquake, they were finding people alive, which is incredible. It feels like we are in a war. People are very affected.

But, it's very touching to see that everyone in Ecuador is involved in relief efforts. It's challenging but I think people are finding the strength and doing what they can to help the affected.
 
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Tourmeister said:
Are the Freedom rental folks posting updates on their efforts anywhere?
Click to expand...

Here is a video that was posted :

[ame="http://youtu.be/xRCozvzpIB8"]Motorcycle Clubs Aid Run - Rio Canoa - YouTube[/ame]
 
Here are a few more updates from Freedom Bike rentals in Ecuador.
 

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Thanks for passing all this info on to us Vinny. it is great the the people at Freedom Rentals are doing so much. I have always heard good things about them and their business.,I hope to rent a bike from them and participate in your group ride next year.
I'm sending a donation.
 
The Comeback of Coastal Ecuador Has Begun!

As you probably know, Ecuador's Northern Coast was struck by 7.8 magnitude earthquake a little over two weeks ago. Like many thousands of people in Ecuador and around the world, we at Ecuador Freedom Bike Rental were swept into one of the most effective and positive reactions to a natural disaster this world has ever seen.

We were on a company retreat in Canoa, after a busy winter season taking some time to enjoy a few rest days and test out the newest vehicle in our fleet when the quake struck. We were lucky to be on soft sand and none of us were hurt. Finding ourselves to be OK, our first instinct was to try to help as many others as we can. We took people to the hospital and with the help of our winch, helped to extract a man that was trapped in a collapsed hotel. You can read about our experience in the quake here.

Following the quake, every town in Ecuador filled their town squares with donated food, water, clothing and tools. The country rallied together in a show of solidarity that is rarely seen anywhere. Volunteers and donations came through, and, while many people have lost their homes and jobs, nobody in the country has felt alone or without support. We thank many of you, our customers and friends, who helped us to purchase two truckloads of tools,food and supplies that we personally delivered to Canoa. These supplies were delivered by a brigade of volunteer dual-sport motorcyclists. The bikes were able to reach the back country residents who had been cut off by damaged roads. Medical supplies and doctors were brought to people that no other relief agency or governmental agency was able to reach. These motorcyclists are true heroes and we are proud to have been able to support them.

We will continue our support of the community, which has now begun a new movement called "Reviva Canoa." Reviva Canoa is a program that will rebuild by using donated funds to put people back to work.

The goal is to end the free handouts and to focus on rebuilding and giving people purpose and organization. Using funds donated, the focus will now be on rebuilding permanent housing and getting people back on their feet. Funds will be used to pay people to help rebuild housing and find permanent solutions. Our friend, Erik Wenz is putting together a set of tools that can be used for this purpose. If you would like to contribute to these efforts, please click this link.

As you will see in the ABC News Coverage here, our partner hotel in Canoa, Canoa Beach Hotel, suffered little damage in the quake. Our tours and community involvement will continue and grow deeper. The goal is to revive the coastal region of Ecuador to be one of the top destinations in Latin America. We believe strongly that the area will come back stronger than ever before.

We are proud of our commitment to the community now and in the past with our community initiatives such as our Pack for a Purpose project. We will continue these initiatives and grow them as we move along together into the future. We know that we now have other international tour companies coming to provide motorcycle tours in Ecuador, but none have been more involved in giving back and supporting Ecuador than our customers and we have been. We thank you for your continued support.
 
Ecuadorian aren't getting any breaks. Another 6.7 earthquake hit last night. No major issues since all the weak structures are already down.

Think about them and how lucky we are at this moment .

Here is an update from one news service :

Wednesday's quake struck the same area hit by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake last month, Ecuador's worst disaster in nearly seven decades. That temblor killed 661 people, including one American, and injured around 16,600. Further tremors were expected for several weeks after that quake, which destroyed 7,000 buildings and left more than 25,000 people living in shelters

Thanks, Vinny
 
Wow... Makes hurricanes not seem so bad ;-) We get lots of warning and we can run away!
 
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