When the torrential waters of Hurricane Mitch poured off the mountains that loom above San Isidro, a small village in the northern Honduran province of Santa Barbara, they left residents stranded on small islands of high ground for days. People were forced to travel in the trees, scurrying along limbs and swinging on ropes they rigged high in the branches. After two weeks, the waters subsided, yet given the erosion of the mountainsides above, every new rain brought renewed flooding of the river that winds through the middle of the village. The flooding prevented children from reaching their school.
Farmers couldn t get their crops to market.
In March 1999, residents asked the Christian Commission for Development for help. CCD staff met with community leaders to design a speedy program of community rehabilitation. CCD provided seeds, fertilizer, tools, and training so that residents could get their fields productive again. With CCD s help, the community constructed 78 latrines and rebuilt the village s water system. In April, the community proudly dedicated two new bridges that stretch across the river.