Chapter 55: Tigre Playa is Flooded
AS TOLD BY GRO AGERSTEN
Marañon overflowes its banks in June 1975
It was getting light, and as usual, I woke up with the dawn at 6 o'clock. I sat up and swung my legs onto the floor. To my surprise, my feet landed in water! They made a real splash! I looked around the room—the entire floor of the bedroom was covered in water. I got dressed and went to Vigdis' room. She was my niece and lived with us to help teach our children and Wilhelm's children as well. Vigdis had just woken up and looked at me from the doorway in shock. The water covered the entire floor of her room as well. Maino and Lewi came splashing to us from their room. They were pretty excited. This was something we had never experienced before, and never had thought we would. We looked out the windows, only to find that everything around us was under water. This time, the Marañon River had come all the way into our house! John was in San Lorenzo, but Rudolf, Eva, and their children were at home next door. The water had just begun to trickle over their doorstep that morning as well. We had many questions: “Will the water continue to rise, or is this the peak? What will we do if the river rises even more? It has never been this high before.” We agreed to wait until after breakfast to make any decisions. I splashed around barefoot in the kitchen while preparing the meal, and I must admit I was pretty worried.
It was getting light, and as usual, I woke up with the dawn at 6 o'clock. I sat up and swung my legs onto the floor. To my surprise, my feet landed in water! They made a real splash! I looked around the room—the entire floor of the bedroom was covered in water. I got dressed and went to Vigdis' room. She was my niece and lived with us to help teach our children and Wilhelm's children as well. Vigdis had just woken up and looked at me from the doorway in shock. The water covered the entire floor of her room as well. Maino and Lewi came splashing to us from their room. They were pretty excited. This was something we had never experienced before, and never had thought we would. We looked out the windows, only to find that everything around us was under water. This time, the Marañon River had come all the way into our house! John was in San Lorenzo, but Rudolf, Eva, and their children were at home next door. The water had just begun to trickle over their doorstep that morning as well. We had many questions: “Will the water continue to rise, or is this the peak? What will we do if the river rises even more? It has never been this high before.” We agreed to wait until after breakfast to make any decisions. I splashed around barefoot in the kitchen while preparing the meal, and I must admit I was pretty worried.
The river had started to rise before John left for San Lorenzo. High water levels were usual at this time of year, so we had not been concerned. San Lorenzo is situated on a high, non-floodable hill, whereas Tigre Playa is located lower and experiences occasional short-term, shallow flooding during the rainy season. In the days that followed John's trip down the Marañon with the "Alli Shungo," we watched the great sandbar disappear completely under water. But it didn't stop there. The river overflowed its banks and slowly continued to rise into the village. We still weren't too worried about it as it had happened before. Not long after we settled on Tigre Playa in January 1970, a flood came and rose a couple of steps to the floor of the bamboo hut we lived in. It stood on stilts like most of the other huts along the Marañon. But the river went down pretty quickly that time. When we built the house and the engine house, and the Wilhelm family built their home, we took into account flooding by filling in the foundation and pouring the floor quite high above ground level. During a couple of previous floods, the water barely washed over the concrete veranda floor, which was only slightly above ground level. Another time, the water went over the first step, but this time it rose a couple more steps, and it kept rising. I was glad that the Wilhelm family was at home next door, and that Vigdis was with me and the children in our house. She had been at Tigre Playa for almost six months. Her room also functioned as a classroom for Maino and Sonja in 4th grade and Ester in 1st grade. The next school year would start in a couple of months, and then there would be another student with Lewi in the first grade. I had many tasks outside of school, both at home, in the church, and with the healthcare, so it would be almost impossible for me to teach four students in three different grades alone if they were to receive good instruction. We were very grateful that Vigdis was willing to come and help us out.
The water rose almost to the height of the window
During the night, the water had started to flow under the door, as we discovered in the morning. It was also seeping in through the brick walls. As we watched the water continue to rise throughout the day, we realized we needed to elevate the items in the house above the water level. Fortunately, there were quite a few bricks and planks left from the construction period. We carried them from their storage place and into our houses. The first things that had to be raised were the refrigerator and freezer that ran on kerosene. Rudolf came over to help us with the heaviest things. Gradually, furniture also had to be raised. Every new morning, we were sure that today the water would stop rising. “The river can’t just keep rising,” was the daily refrain. But it did, albeit slowly. Rudolf was worried about the generator. It stood on a raised cement slab on the floor of the engine house, but the water rose closer and closer to the screws with which it was mounted on the slab. He struggled for a long time to loosen the screws, which would allow him to raise the engine to a higher place. But they wouldn't budge with the tools he had at hand. We just had to hope the water receded before it reached the generator.
The water rose almost to the height of the window
During the night, the water had started to flow under the door, as we discovered in the morning. It was also seeping in through the brick walls. As we watched the water continue to rise throughout the day, we realized we needed to elevate the items in the house above the water level. Fortunately, there were quite a few bricks and planks left from the construction period. We carried them from their storage place and into our houses. The first things that had to be raised were the refrigerator and freezer that ran on kerosene. Rudolf came over to help us with the heaviest things. Gradually, furniture also had to be raised. Every new morning, we were sure that today the water would stop rising. “The river can’t just keep rising,” was the daily refrain. But it did, albeit slowly. Rudolf was worried about the generator. It stood on a raised cement slab on the floor of the engine house, but the water rose closer and closer to the screws with which it was mounted on the slab. He struggled for a long time to loosen the screws, which would allow him to raise the engine to a higher place. But they wouldn't budge with the tools he had at hand. We just had to hope the water receded before it reached the generator.
John comes home
Finally, we received word from John over the radio that a larger boat had docked in San Lorenzo the night before. John persuaded the owner to tow Alli Shungo up to Tigre Playa, and now they would soon start their trip up the river. By then, several days had passed since the water first entered our houses. Towards the afternoon, John was able to moor the boat under an orange tree outside the church. We were all happy to see him safely back and to get more help with the work and challenges that the flooding brought. The water was now so high that the floor of the neighboring family's hut was underwater. The family moved in with us in the church. Adolfo, who was blind, his wife, and three small children came to Tigre Playa shortly after we returned from Norway in 1972. They came from a village near Morona where they had no family. At that time, all the children were sick. We were able to buy a small hut for them below the two houses we had built for the sick with families who came to Tigre Playa for help. Adolfo and his family accepted faith in Jesus. The adults were baptized and faithfully attended the services. Now they were given a corner at the back of the church where they arranged their beds. There were no services in the church at this time. Many families had moved to their fields that were on the heights along the small river that flows out just by Tigre Playa. Those who remained in the village moved as little as possible into the murky Marañon water that flowed around us on all sides. Elio Solis (whom we wrote about in the last couple of chapters) had been with John to San Lorenzo and returned with him. Elio was very helpful with many different tasks during this time. He slept in the wheelhouse of the Alli Shungo, but ate with us in the church. |
We move into the church
We realized after a couple of days that we had no other option but to move to the church. On the second day with water inside, we woke up to find our sheets soaked after an edge had fallen into the water and pulled it up until almost the entire sheet was wet! Also, it wasn't much fun cooking in water that was ankle-deep. The church stood on stilts that were significantly higher than the floor level of our houses. We laid a heavy plastic sheet over the entire floor of the Sunday school room at the back of the church. We laid our mattresses in rows on the plastic sheet. The bedding was put in place, and finally, the mosquito nets that we used when traveling were hung over our “beds.” Everyone moved out, except Rudolf, who wanted to stay in his raised bed in the house. John was still in San Lorenzo, where he had traveled to visit the growing group of believers over the weekend. He was also hoping to get help from a mechanic at the oil company base to look at the starter for the engine of the houseboat and other things that were not working quite right. It turned out that a new part was needed, but it had to be ordered from Lima. He couldn't start the boat. He was waiting for a larger boat to tow Alli Shungo up the Marañon to Tigre Playa. John had to stay there for the time being, despite being very worried about our situation at home. 
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He also assisted our blind friend Adolfo and his family by helping them cook on the hearth in their home. It was a built up a l. Moreover, the water was only just above the floor in their house. They got food from us. There were plenty of wild boar and small game during the flood. Our neighbors knew where the heights were, where the animals sought refuge from the water. We were constantly offered meat to buy and had plenty to share with others. We also slaughtered some of our chickens; however, there were no fish. The fish swim far into the jungle trees at high tide, but when the water goes down, large schools come up the river. There were still plenty of bananas and cassava for now, but eventually, many of the fields were destroyed by the water.
We went over to the house every day to see how it was and to possibly raise something even higher. It became more difficult every day since the water level got so high. The children found it a bit exciting to see our house full of water. They made sure that all their toys and books were high above the water.
We went over to the house every day to see how it was and to possibly raise something even higher. It became more difficult every day since the water level got so high. The children found it a bit exciting to see our house full of water. They made sure that all their toys and books were high above the water.
The chickens were fed in the morning and afternoon. They laid fewer eggs than usual during the flooding, but there were always some eggs to collect almost every day. We set up several high perches for them to sit on, but occasionally one fell into the water. The brooding boxes where they laid eggs were already built high up. We also had to build up the food dish. In the picture below, it's my turn in the henhouse. We ladies shared that job. Elio rowed us safely between the houses. The children enjoyed coming along since they couldn't play outside. The older children were supposed to have school, but it was difficult without a dedicated space to do the schoolwork and teaching. We did some schoolwork on the benches in the church, but it wasn't easy since there were so many distractions.
Shortly after John came home, the water overflowed the church floor as well, and we had to build a higher floor for our mattresses using bricks and planks. For a couple of days, the water lapped over the floor, which is made of chopped palm trunks, before the river began to recede.
Shortly after John came home, the water overflowed the church floor as well, and we had to build a higher floor for our mattresses using bricks and planks. For a couple of days, the water lapped over the floor, which is made of chopped palm trunks, before the river began to recede.
The water starts to recede!
It was a joyous day when we discovered that the water had receded somewhat during the night. The first day or two, it receded quite slowly, but then it dropped more quickly. When the water finally receded to more normal levels, a sad sight greeted us. There was mud everywhere, even inside our houses, but not as bad as outside. The water had partially filtered through the brick walls. We could see that we had quite a job ahead of us. We started washing and cleaning as soon as possible. The floors and walls up to window height were washed, and furniture and other things were cleaned and put back in their usual places. It went pretty well, and most of the mud and dirt came out without lasting damage! John and Rudolf got to work on the generator as soon as the water was out of the engine house. It had been partially submerged for many days. They dismantled it and laid the parts outside in the sun to dry. We were both excited and anxious when it was put back together. Would it start? There was a cheer from the engine house when it started on the first try. Everyone was excited when the lights came on in all the bulbs and fluorescent tubes! During the entire flood, we had to use the kerosene lamps that we had in reserve from the time before we got the generator.
The flood lasted 14 days. It destroyed most of the fields in the district, and people had little to eat. The game meat helped them during the flood. When the water receded, the schools of fish came. Everyone went out in their canoes with their “tarafa” – fishing nets and harpoons. There was plenty of fish for everyone, and we also got fish and were offered fish that we exchanged for rice. Fish were lying on logs and roofs to dry. The sun dried both the fish and the clay in the days that followed the flood. We ordered bags of rice and beans that came by the regular boat from Iquitos. In addition, John and Elio brought bananas and cassava from Morona on a planned trip to the villages there in July. Along Morona, the land is higher, so most of the fields had escaped the flooding. We distributed all of this to the neighbors on Tigre Playa as far as we could.
In all the years that we lived at Marañon, both on Tigre Playa and in Saramiriza, we never experienced such an immense flood again. But in 1997, there was a flood that was probably close to the great flood in 1975. After the flood in -97, we received contributions from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help people in many of the villages along the Marañon with school meals in addition to food and new plants.
It was a joyous day when we discovered that the water had receded somewhat during the night. The first day or two, it receded quite slowly, but then it dropped more quickly. When the water finally receded to more normal levels, a sad sight greeted us. There was mud everywhere, even inside our houses, but not as bad as outside. The water had partially filtered through the brick walls. We could see that we had quite a job ahead of us. We started washing and cleaning as soon as possible. The floors and walls up to window height were washed, and furniture and other things were cleaned and put back in their usual places. It went pretty well, and most of the mud and dirt came out without lasting damage! John and Rudolf got to work on the generator as soon as the water was out of the engine house. It had been partially submerged for many days. They dismantled it and laid the parts outside in the sun to dry. We were both excited and anxious when it was put back together. Would it start? There was a cheer from the engine house when it started on the first try. Everyone was excited when the lights came on in all the bulbs and fluorescent tubes! During the entire flood, we had to use the kerosene lamps that we had in reserve from the time before we got the generator.
The flood lasted 14 days. It destroyed most of the fields in the district, and people had little to eat. The game meat helped them during the flood. When the water receded, the schools of fish came. Everyone went out in their canoes with their “tarafa” – fishing nets and harpoons. There was plenty of fish for everyone, and we also got fish and were offered fish that we exchanged for rice. Fish were lying on logs and roofs to dry. The sun dried both the fish and the clay in the days that followed the flood. We ordered bags of rice and beans that came by the regular boat from Iquitos. In addition, John and Elio brought bananas and cassava from Morona on a planned trip to the villages there in July. Along Morona, the land is higher, so most of the fields had escaped the flooding. We distributed all of this to the neighbors on Tigre Playa as far as we could.
In all the years that we lived at Marañon, both on Tigre Playa and in Saramiriza, we never experienced such an immense flood again. But in 1997, there was a flood that was probably close to the great flood in 1975. After the flood in -97, we received contributions from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help people in many of the villages along the Marañon with school meals in addition to food and new plants.
