Galápagos Flood Relief: Help Santa Cruz Recover
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$16,250 raised of $30K
62 donations
Emergency funds for flood-affected families on Santa Cruz Island. IGTOA will match the first $5,000 donated!
DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT: $5,000 MATCH
IGTOA will match the first $5,000 in donations dollar for dollar, so your
gift goes twice as far.
Neighbors Helping Neighbors. Relief Where It’s Needed Most.
On the night of October 30, torrential rain fell on Santa Cruz Island in the Galápagos for more than ten hours straight. Streams and ravines in the highlands overflowed, and water rushed down into Puerto Ayora. In some neighborhoods, floodwaters rose as high as three meters. Rain gauges in Puerto Ayora recorded one of the heaviest single days of rainfall ever measured in the islands. Longtime residents say no one remembers anything like it.
Roughly 2,000 families have been affected. Homes were flooded or destroyed in Bellavista, Santa Rosa, Miramar, Divino Niño, La Cascada and El Aguacatal. Roads were cut off, power went out across the highlands, and the island’s health center was knocked out of service. Many families lost nearly everything they own. Some had to swim to safety with their children. Tragically, the flooding also claimed at least one life.
Ecuador’s government has declared an emergency and is flying in supplies. But the people of Santa Cruz are already organizing to help each other, and that is where your gift comes in.
THE GALÁPAGOS COMMUNITY LIBRARY: ON THE GROUND, FROM DAY ONE
For years, the Biblioteca Comunitaria para Galápagos y el Mundo in Puerto Ayora has offered free books, workshops and programs to everyone on Santa Cruz. Now its team and volunteers are turning that community network toward recovery.
Right now, two community groups are cooking hot meals every day for displaced families. Volunteers are also buying things people urgently need, like heavy-duty sacks for hauling out mud and debris, since ordinary plastic bags can’t hold up. Standing water is lingering, so the library team is also bringing mosquito repellent in from the mainland. None is left in town, and families face a growing risk of dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases.
HOW YOUR GIFT WILL BE USED
Every dollar raised will go to the Galápagos Community Library. The library is managed by AGIPA, the Galápagos National Park Guides Association, and AGIPA’s established organization and bank account will be used to distribute funds to the groups and projects helping affected families, including:
- Daily meals for displaced families
- Cleanup supplies and essential household items
- Mosquito repellent and other health protections
- Other needs as recovery moves from emergency to rebuilding
Needs will change week by week, and the library team is in the best position to see where help will go furthest. We will post updates here so you can see how your gifts are being used.
IGTOA AND THE LIBRARY: PARTNERS FOR YEARS
The International Galápagos Tour Operators Association (IGTOA) is organizing this campaign. IGTOA has been a major sponsor of the Galápagos Community Library for years, and its ongoing support has helped keep the library’s doors open and its programs free. That long partnership is why we trust the library team to put these funds to work quickly and responsibly.
This is a dedicated flood relief fund, kept separate from the library’s regular operating budget. Every dollar here goes to helping families recover.
So many of us have been welcomed to Santa Cruz by its guides, hotel owners, boat crews and families. Now they need us. Please give what you can by Monday, November 9. And remeber, IGTOA will match the first $5,000 in donations!
Join IGTOA and the Galápagos Community Library in helping Santa Cruz recover!
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International Galapagos Tour Operators Association
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