Tuesday, 12 October 2010, 5:32 pm Press Release: United Nations An international conference opened in Guatemala today to help in the reconstruction of the Central American country after devastating volcanic eruptions and torrential rains, with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pledging full United Nations support. “The United Nations system has been deeply engaged in the humanitarian response [...]

GUATEMALA CITY, Oct. 12 (UPI) — The global community is working hand-in-hand with Guatemalan authorities to help rebuild after a deadly May volcanic eruption, a U.N. official said. Tropical Storm Agatha wiped out roads and infrastructure after it killed more than 150 people in May. The emergency was compounded by the violent eruption of the [...]

The following excerpt is from an August 4, 2010 article published by Bloomberg Anywhere.  To read the article in its entirety, please click here. Coffee exports from Honduras, set to become the world’s sixth-biggest exporter, will be about 9 percent lower than forecast this crop year because of losses from bad weather and a coup, [...]

The following excerpt is from a July 13, 2010 article published by The Christian Science Monitor.  To read the article in its entirety, please click here. The Tampa sinkhole that swallowed a car Sunday is not as deep, wide, or perfectly cylindrical as the Guatemala sinkhole that emerged in late May to rabid news coverage… [...]

The following excerpt is from a June 8, 2010 article published by The Huffington Post.  To read the article in its entirety, please click here. PANAJACHEL, Guatemala — For three days I’ve been traveling the villages of Lake Atitlan, watching the slow shift from disaster to windfall. On Saturday, we stood together in Marvilla’s kitchen [...]

June 5, 2010:  The following is an excerpt from an update published by As Green As It Gets (www.asgreenasitgets.org).  To read the update in its entirety, please click here.  To donate to their Agatha relief fund, please visit their website. “Greetings, and thank you to all that have helped so far, The last few days [...]

If you have ever been to Antigua for any length of time, most likely you have heard of Hugo Suarez, of Expeditions Guatemala.  Having been dubbed the “unoffical mayor” of Antigua, he has been using all of his considerable energies to help those affected by the volcano and storm.  If you are interested in helping [...]

Like I said, writing checks is never fun, but here is a short-list of grassroots NGOs who are helping people in Guatemala right now.  Where I can, I note exactly how funds are being used by these groups.  It’s a cliché, but the smallest donations will go a long way at the moment. In all [...]

 May 31, 2010:  This report is from Vicki D., of Safe Homes for Children: “Agatha caused alot more immediate trouble in our area than Pacaya did. Some houses went down – it doesn’t take much to take down corn cob walls and rusty tin roofs and mud floors. We had some mud in our kitchen, [...]

Editor’s note:  My deepest thanks goes to Alix C., for compiling these facts, and presenting them far more eloquently than I ever could. Facts compiled from a variety of news sources. Guatemala declared a state of emergency on Saturday as heavy rain from Tropical Storm Agatha, which hit the Central American nation last Thursday, continued [...]

May 30, 2010:  Here is an update posted on the Asofamila blog.  An important message here is that the sponsored families have been contacted, most are okay.  If you sponsored family needs help, you will be contacted. Dear friends and families, Please pray for our country, because natural disasters are causing serious problems to all [...]

For those of you not well-versed in internet acronyms (like my spouse….and mother), that stands for In My Humble Opinion.   I’ve been keeping this blog for nearly a year now, and specifically have kept my opinions to myself – the purpose of the blog, after all,  is to focus on our beloved Guatemala. Over the past [...]

…Familias de Esperanza or Common Hope is asking for donations of water to help those victims from San Miquel Escobar, (located just outside of Antigua between Antigua and Cuidad Veija)… lives lost and homes buried under Agua’s mud flows… If you want to help, please take bottles of water out to Common Hope, on the [...]

May 30, 2010:  Common Hope has released an update, along with some pictures of damage in San Miguel Escobar.  On Friday, May 28th, the volcano Pacaya erupted outside Guatemala City covering the area with 3 inches of ash.  Tropical Storm Agatha came onshore on Saturday, dropping over 4 inches of rain in less than 12 [...]

May 30, 2010:  Common Hope has released an update, along with some pictures of damage in San Miguel Escobar.  On Friday, May 28th, the volcano Pacaya erupted outside Guatemala City covering the area with 3 inches of ash.  Tropical Storm Agatha came onshore on Saturday, dropping over 4 inches of rain in less than 12 [...]

May 30, 2010:  A report from Lisa C., as posted on the Yahoo group, Mayan Families Connections. I am here in Antigua and can confirm that the situation is very dire. After two earthquakes earlier this week and the Pacaya eruption, the streets in Guatemala City and surrounding areas were covered in volcanic sand. Just [...]

May 30, 2010:  A report from Lisa C., as posted on the Yahoo group, Mayan Families Connections. I am here in Antigua and can confirm that the situation is very dire. After two earthquakes earlier this week and the Pacaya eruption, the streets in Guatemala City and surrounding areas were covered in volcanic sand. Just [...]

May 29, 2010, 9:45 p.m.  A report from New Hope-Guatemala:  “Guatemala is in deep problems for a couple of reasons. We thought we had problems with the eruption of the Pacaya volcano, but now with the Tropical storm Agatha we know what trouble is. This is like living hurricane Stan all over again. Guatemala city [...]

May 29, 2010, 9:45 p.m.  A report from New Hope-Guatemala:  “Guatemala is in deep problems for a couple of reasons. We thought we had problems with the eruption of the Pacaya volcano, but now with the Tropical storm Agatha we know what trouble is. This is like living hurricane Stan all over again. Guatemala city [...]

May 29 2010, 7:15 p.m. Guatemala time: from Guatemala City we receive this report from Mann P.:  Two phenomena are effecting Guatemala: the volcano eruption and Agatha. Agatha is inflicting heavy winds and water, almost a hurricane. At this rate, in a couple hours bridges are going to be in danger. Ash is no longer [...]

CONRED, the Guatemalan national disaster center, is regularly updating its site for developments in the Pacaya eruption.  Although the site is in Spanish, you can click here for the Google-translated version.