Here goes another intel report... squelch your radios to give me the affirmative once you've read it.
The team today got into Chiguayante eventually despite a few delays here and there and waiting to get in touch with Esteban Maldonado. They were invited to stay for lunch, but the idea is to arrive, deliver and not eat the goods. (Some of us just wouldn't qualify for that kind of a mission!)
The team was contacted by a teen (from our church in Santiago) who was in Concepcion for vacation and caught in the earthquake. Diego wanted to get out with his little sister and get back to Santiago to be with their dad. So, there was some triangulation of cell phones going on as comically, I could occasionally get through to them, but they had a hard time getting directly in touch. They missed Diego at the first rendezvous time. Later, on their way out, we were doing phone tag to coordinate the rendezvous, and finally after much tension, praying, calling, etc., the pick-up was made. Praise be to God!
The last comm I got from the team is that they made the extraction and were headed back to Santiago. If I can get some of the pictures that they've taken, I'll share them.
Around noon today I was with Sandro Valdivia getting gas receipts and he gave me a tour of the damage to their building. Pretty disconcerting to see some significan damage there that will need possibly demolished as some of it looks beyond repair.
Sandro debriefed me a bit about the trip yesterday. I think the scene in Concepcion is better with military presence, however he said the people are quite aggressive in their interactions with others. Desperation and depravity make quite a volatile reaction within human kind. Sandro said that at this point, he was a bit concerned for people who would be just passing out tracts since people are surviving while waiting for food and water. He said it could be dangerous, and I see the point that tracts aren't optimum ways of rehydration or nourishment. There probably would be a more receptive experience if water and a tract are given, or something of the nature.
Sandro and his team got back this morning at 6 a.m., a total of 26 hours on this mission. Traffic is abundant and slow due to the detours and improvised road conditions in spots.
David Luzuriaga (another national pastor) is organizing another team to go down Saturday or Sunday. They will be picking up left over stuff that La Reina couldn't fit into the car they took down. Again, water is very key to take down, more than clothes, and even more than food.
Some are saying that clothes should be saved for the towns that were wiped out by the tsunamis as they do need everything. Someone has a contact in Constitucion, a lot closer to Santiago, but that is a bit further down in the sequence of trips scheduled at this point.
That's what we know as of now. Will be in touch as intel becomes available.
Mark for the Santiago base of operations
p.s. we've had some tremors here this afternoon, and strong ones in Concepcion.
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