[CS-FSLUG] Update on Paraguayan Tragedy

[Eduardo Sanchez]

I was told by my boss that I should show up in church services a little 
bit more frequently, so I stayed there after teaching Sunday School. 
The service was the usual glitzy show of drum, amplifiers, high volume 
and low quality and spirituality. After enduring it, I called my wife 
and she asked me to stop by the supermarket on my way back home. While 
riding of the bus, I saw a fire truck with all the sirens going on 
madly, and I thought it was just another fire.

While in the supermarket, I saw people crowded on the TV sets on sale 
there. Apparently, there was some breaking news that warranted that the 
TV networks stop their usual Sunday programming. I went nearer the TV 
sets to see what was happening, and I saw that there was a huge fire 
somewhere. Ok, I thought. I'll check it out at home. After my shopping, 
I walked home and turned on the TV, and I just began to realize the 
magnitude of what happened.

All out of a sudden, a loud explosion was heard inside one of the 
supermarkets of the Ykua Bolaños chain, and all hell broke loose, 
People stampeding trying to get out; many dead by fire; and many 
trapped, who died shortly thereafter after the roof crashed.

The death count, as I am writing this, is over 300, including at least 
one pregnant women, a baby and several children. Many of the deceased 
are unidentified. The injured are just too many, and like the dead, 
many of them are unidentified, their features burned beyond 
recognition. There are still bodies to be retrieved from the 
supermarket, but there are also fears that the whole structure would 
collapse any time soon.

Several hospitals of the Asunción were converted into makeshift triage 
posts, helping as much as they can. They are literally flooded with 
patients and hospital beds are scarce now. The scenes showed by TV were 
simply harrowing and gut-wrenching.

As for other details, well, there were simply too many things that went 
wrong. There are strong, substantial allegations that once news of the 
fires reached the owner of the chain, a Mr. Paiva, ordered the gates 
closed "to prevent looting", thus trapping many people. The fire alarm 
did not have a battery backup power supply, so it couldn't go live when 
the power was cut. The roof collapsed suspiciously too soon.

And I pray I might be wrong on this regard, but it was the most crowded 
time in a supermarket: the Sunday noon, when people go there to buy 
groceries and ready-made food, and eat at the annexed eatery, so I 
suspect a bombing or sabotage. (Update: It seems that all was due to a 
gas leak.)

President Nicanor Duarte ordered a two-day national mourning period with 
no activities. Tomorrow is also a day off from classes in all schools.

Please pray for all the victims and their families. Thanks to our Lord, 
I am able to confirm that all of our families (Gloria's and mine) are 
safe and sound. I just spoke with my boss by phone and he confirmed 
that so far no one in neither our Baptist School nor Church was harmed; 
but everyone here is shaken.

Blessings,

Eduardo
-- 
Prof. Eduardo Sanchez
Asuncion, Paraguay, South America
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