The death toll from Sunday’s landslide in Alausí rose to 24 Friday as rescue crews say they have little hope of finding more survivors in the 24-hectare rubble field. In addition to the dead, 39 people are listed as injured with 67 still missing. According to the Risk...
Blog
On the scene in Alausí, Cuenca’s Hogar de Esperanza asks expats to help the landslide victims
By Gary Vatcher During the evening of last Sunday, as the earth started to slide in Alausí, no one expected such a tragedy. With more than 2,000 people affected and 67 still missing, the country has come together to help. People have lost their homes, their livelihood...
Airbnb owners targeted by the IRS; Local tourism sector worries about poor connectivity; Time for fanesca; Coastal hospital directors are murdered
Viernes, 31/3/2023 Hola, Todos - Actividades - Titular - Lasso 'dará la cara' en juicio ante Asamblea (Lasso 'will 'show his face' in trial before Assembly) - See today's article (viernes) in CHL for story. Cuenca - Preocupado sector turístico se alista para recibir...
Lasso vows a fight for his personal integrity in trial; Death cross is the ‘elephant in the room’
Proclaiming his innocence, President Guillermo Lasso said Thursday night he believes he can “overcome and prevail” in the National Assembly’s impeachment trial. Accompanied by his wife, María de Lourdes Alcívar, Lasso said he can prove he did not commit extortion or...
South America’s top five retirement cities offer low cost of living, good health care and air connectivity
By Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy If your dream is to retire somewhere exotic and where your retirement savings will go the furthest, South America is a good option to consider. With a vast array of cultures, landscapes and history, there is something for everyone. Here are...
Airlines add flights to Medellín and Cartagena and are considering Cuenca routes to Peru
The Chilean-based airline Latam and Colombian-based Avianca are increasing air routes between Colombia and Ecuador this week, connecting Guayaquil with Bogotá, Medellín and Cartagena, and Quito with Medellín. In addition, Latam announced it is considering adding...
Where can you donate to landslide victims?; Quake victims need help too; Holy week concerts feature Handel and Haydn; Clowns in the parks
Miércoles, 29/3/2023 Hola, Todos - Actividades - Dos conciertos por Semana Santa (2 concerts for Holy Week) - <Foodies, don't confuse this with Holey Week which is a celebration of Swiss cheese.> The Conservatorio Superior José María Rodríguez chorus, directed y...
Constitutional Court approves National Assembly impeachment trial; Lasso has three options
As expected, Ecuador's Constitutional Court approved the National Assembly’s petition to begin impeachment proceedings against President Guillermo Lasso. In a six to three vote Wednesday night, the judges agreed that allegations of embezzlement involving public...
Our first responders are heroes everyday, in Ecuador and around the world
By Jan Dynes Ecuador had an earthquake two weeks ago. Our rescue teams were kept very busy in everyplace affected, although I think here in Cuenca that many citizens also leaped into action and helped as well. This is a country where everyone helps their neighbors. I...
More bodies recovered from the Alausí landslide but the number of missing continues to grow
As residents of Alausí joined the search for survivors at the site of Sunday’s landslide, officials say it is unlikely more will be found. A 13-year-old girl and a young man were pulled alive from the rubble on Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday four more bodies were...
Concerns about the ‘death cross’ grow in the National Assembly as the Constitutional Court appears likely to okay an impeachment trial
As the likelihood the Constitutional Court will green-light an impeachment trial against President Guillermo Lasso grows, members of the National Assembly acknowledged Tuesday that they could soon be without a job if Lasso invokes the muerte cruzada, or death cross....
Area’s worst natural disaster remembered on the 30th anniversary of the Josefina landslide and flood
By Sylvan Hardy As they do every year, a small group will gather Wednesday on the banks of the Rio Paute, near the town of Paute, to remember those killed 30 years ago in what has become known simply as the Josefina Disaster, a giant landslide that blocked the Rio...
Search for the missing continues in Alausí landslide; Court begins review of Lasso impeachment case; Two polls show rejection of impeachment trial
Local officials are crediting the slow development of Sunday night’s landslide in Alausí for saving lives. According to the Alausí mayor’s office, many residents in the slide zone felt the movement of the earth or heard the rumble of rocks as the landslide began above...
Funds available for quake victims; Azuay and Cañar Provinces are leaders in overseas remittances; Nuns open museum and gardens in Todo Santos
Lunes, 27/3/2023 Hola, Todos - Actividades - De El Mercurio del sábado, 25/3: Las Oblatas abren su museo y huerto (The Oblates open their museum and orchard) - After 2 years of preparation and work, the Oblatas Sisters of Cuenca opened their first museum in the Todo...
Mayor-elect Zamora to push bus-tram integration and says 3-month airport closure is ‘not rational’
Editor's note: This is the second of a two-part series about plans Mayor-elect Cristian Zamora has for Cuenca. To read part one, click here. By Stephen Vargha Public transportation systems bring many benefits to individuals, cities, and the local economy. But all too...
Large death toll expected from massive Alausí landslide; Cuenca rescue units arrive at the scene
Rescue teams worked through the night Sunday and early Monday following a massive landslide in the Alausí neighborhood of Pueblo Viejo. Police say that dozens of houses have been buried and that the death toll will be “tragically very high.” The landslide buried the...
Cuenca’s new mayor lists crime, healthcare, informal vendors, parks and the Turi prison as top priorities
Editor's note: This is the first of a two-part series about plans Mayor-elect Cristian Zamora has for Cuenca. By Stephen Vargha Cuenca’s incoming Mayor, Cristian Zamora, has ambitious and progressive plans for the town he grew up in. “I want to concentrate on...
Acts of kindness and generosity nourish the soul: Do your part to help those in need
As bewildering as it may be, I am occasionally confronted by expats right here in Cuenca who are spiteful. Some appear to have been severely wounded by their own past misdeeds, others by strongly felt objections to the culture and politics they left behind, and...
LP gas tanks installed by Odebrecht to be removed; Cuenca sidewalks unfriendly to the disabled; Theater of the barrios; Respect your trash collector!
Viernes, 24/3/2023 Hola, Todos - If there's anyone out there who is missing collard greens, I have a lot of seeds. The greens bolted and went to seed so I'm not sure what's coming up - something closer to the parent rather than the hybrid? If you want some seeds -...
Study helps explain ayahuasca’s effect on human brain functions, including the imagination
By Ian Sample The brew is so potent that practitioners report not only powerful hallucinations, but near-death experiences, contact with higher-dimensional beings, and life-transforming voyages through alternative realities. Often before throwing up, or having trouble...