Hurricane Dean, August 21, 2007 - Please help Bacalar residents and nearby villages recover from this devastating event.

More than 1000 families in Bacalar alone have lost their homes and many of their possessions. The government is providing some support but so much more is needed. If you can send money or even clothes, it will help immensely.

Most jobs in Bacalar derive from tourism and local agriculture, both of which have been decimated by Dean. As a result many people have lost their jobs in addition to their homes and possessions. The military has set up a field kitchen providing meals, but many residents have no way of getting there several times a day and traveling the streets of Bacalar is difficult now.

Bacalar community volunteers are collecting funds to purchase medicine, water, rice, beans, dried milk, diapers, formula, fruits, vegetables and chicken for distribution in neighborhoods hit hardest and to help rebuild homes. It costs a family of five (two adults, two children, one infant) about $14 USD a day for minimal subsistence; to support one family for the next difficult month of the rainy season is $400 USD. There are more than 1000 families who have lost their homes and, while the Yucatan has a strong tradition of families and neighbors helping each other, the need is so great and the remaining resources so modest that outside help is critical to bridging the gap while people rebuild their homes and lives.

If you can't afford to donate a month of support, donate as many weeks (or days) as you can. If you can afford more than a month, donate as many months as you can. 100% of all funds reach those in need; BacalarMosaico offers this community service at no fee and we cover the modest direct costs of administering the website collection and community distribution activities.

If you want to send money via paypal go to paypal.com and send it to the account of plondahl@gmail.com but understand that paypal takes 4.5% fee to cover the cost of the transaction so consider sending a check.

If you want to send a check, make it out to Margaret Londahl and send it to my US address (below) and it will get into my account which I can get at via ATM here in Bacalar.

Margaret Londahl

Hurricane Dean relief fund

175 White Road

Warwick, MA 01378

If you want to direct deposit into a Mexican bank account:

HSBC cuenta de Arturo Borrego Durantes: 4023597768

Don't send any more clothing as we just found out that some of the clothing is being rejected. We will report here as clothing begins to come in (or not) but we won't know anything for another month.

Clothing update: Sept 21st - We did just get in 5 boxes of clothing so at least some is getting through.

If you want to send clothes (expect three-four weeks in transit even if sent air mail) you can send them to my post office box:

Margaret Londahl

para los victimas de DEAN - ropas usados (it is important to indicate used clothes and for Dean victims )

APTDO 36 - 551 Costera

Bacalar, Q. Roo 77931

"Hurricane Dean was the fourth named storm, first hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the most intense tropical cyclone in the Atlantic basin since Hurricane Wilma of 2005, is the ninth most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and is the third most intense Atlantic hurricane ever at landfall." quote from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Dean

Some links for more information about Dean including videos:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070823/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/tropical_weather_maya

http://helphurricanedeanbacalarsurvivors.blogspot.com/

http://video.aol.com/video/news-raw-video-dean-slams-into-chetumal-mexico/1960547

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21vTH2K6ZuA