Catastrophe on Sarapiquí River & some bright news

One of the primary reasons we started this blog was to prepare you for the upcoming paddling expedition to Costa Rica. Our concern was that the Cinchona Earthquake of January 2009 would greatly impact our trip. As you've read through this blog, you've learned more about the cause and type of the quake, as well as seen some of the human impacts.

After much digging, we have arrived at the meat of our interests... the Sarapiqui River. The prognosis is not good: “For the Sarapiquí River, the earthquake was a catastrophe,” said Ron Coleman, a U.S. researcher from California State University in Sacramento (Explore Costa Rica, 2009). Coleman is speaking specifically in terms of the fish populations on the river, which has been decimated (some fear that the entire population was wiped out) due to the mudslides. The mud has eliminated the dissolved oxygen, essentially suffocating all aquatic life.

Ecologically, the bright news is that the tributaries to the Sarapiqui remain healthy and Coleman and other researchers agree that it will rejuvenate the main stream over time. The aquatic life should return and with it the birds and other animals the region is famous for. However, the Saraipiqui is a huge tourist destination, and the local economies were severely threatened for a few months
.

And what about whitewater? The extremely instability of the river and the copious amounts of mud made paddling impossible for months. The Costa Rican government closed the river to rafting due to the large number of trees found in the river. However, for us, there is great news. In April, the government reopened the river to rafting, and companies began leading trips again (Emailwire.com, 2009). Therefore, we should be good to go to utilize the Sarapiqui on this expedition!!!





References:

Explore Costa Rica. 2009. Costa Rica Earthquake Has Researchers Concerned. Retrieved on July 9, 2009 from http://www.explorecostarica.com/newsmanager/publish/Costa_Rica_Earthquake_Has_Researchers_Concerned.shtml

Emailwire.com. 2009. Costa Rica’s Sarapiqui River Reopens to Rafting After Earthquake Damage Retrieved on July 10, 2009 from http://www.emailwire.com/release/21242-Costa-Ricas-Sarapiqui-River-Reopens-to-Rafting-After-Earthquake-Damage.html

More photos of aftermath

"Today is a day of mourning for Costa Ricans," President Oscar Arias







Reference:

Sina English. 2009. Costa Rican rescuers menaced by mudslides after quake. Retrieved on July 10, 2009, from http://english.sina.com/world/p/2009/0112/210940.html

Cinchona Earthquake - Human Impacts

Well, after considerably more research, we've found even more information to share about the 2009 earthquake in Costa Rica. First of all, it is being referred to as the "Cinchona Earthquake," due to the heavy damage in the town of Cinchona.

The event has had a huge impact on the people of Costa Rica. At least 34 people died in the quake, largely due to mudslides near the extraordinarily popular tourist destination, La Paz Waterfall. Additionally, the quake injured 91 people and left 64 missing. During the quake, over 350 tourists were stranded due to road closures and had to eventually be evacuated by helicopter.

The Red Cross brought in over 400 volunteers to help deal with the aftermath. Both the United States and Columbia sent in helicopters and aid to assist the Costa Rican government, which does not have a military to utilize.






It can be difficult for us to understand what the experience was like during the earthquake. What causes the dramatic photos shown above? Several cameras around the country captured the event, however, and have been compiled on this video, from the BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7819252.stm Note the violence of shaking and the swaying light fixtures. The panic felt is evident in the body language and actions of the people shown.




References:

BBC. 2009. Thirteen dead in Costa Rica quake. Retrieved on July 3, 2009 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7819252.stm

Sina English. 2009. Costa Rican rescuers menaced by mudslides after quake. Retrieved on July 10, 2009, from http://english.sina.com/world/p/2009/0112/210940.html

Fault Location and Technical Details of Earthquake

Expedition members:

We've been doing our research on January's earthquake in Costa Rica and wanted to share some of our findings for your background info.

First of all, the earthquake occurred on the Caribbean Plate, just to the east of its boundary with the neighboring Cocos Plate. The Cocos plate subducts below the Caribbean plate, causing a slip-strike mechanism (USGS, 2009, Earthquake Summary). Here's an animation of slip-strike mechanisms, to give you an idea of what it looked like: Slip-strike animation The quake was a magnitude 6.1 on the Richter scale.

As you can see from the map below (USGS, 2009, Earthquake Summary), the epicenter of the quake was almost directly north of the capital, San Jose, where we will all be flying into. It appears as air traffic is currently fully operational.



We'll be back with more information on the quake, including details on how it is affecting the residents and our plans to paddle.

References:

USGS. 2009. Earthquake summary. Retrieved on July 4, 2009 from: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/us2009bpba.php#summary

USGS. 2009. Earthquake location. Retrieved on July 4, 2009 from: http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eq_depot/2009/eq_090108_bpba/neic_bpba_l.html

Welcome!!!

Hello all expedition members! We are very excited that you have decided to join us on an expedition to Costa Rica this coming fall. As I'm sure you know, the country is renowned for its amazing landscape, biodiversity, and whitewater rivers (which is what I'm sure you're all most excited about). We created this blog so you could learn more about the conditions in Costa Rica, and about the rivers we will be exploring.

Specifically, we want to elaborate on the recent earthquake in Costa Rica. This geological event has significantly impacted our plans for paddling in the country, as reports are coming in which indicate that the Sarapiqui River has been greatly changed by the earthquake. We will be posting more information about that quake, its causes and effects, and its relevance to us in the coming days. Please stay tuned!