Two million visitors

 When I started this blog in August 2012 during the devastating La Gomera fire I never expected anything and hadn't a clue about blogging. I just wanted to report what was going on here as there wasn't much reliable information from or about La Gomera in English. The international media didn't bother checking facts, never mind sending correspondents, and just reported La Gomera's disaster as part of other fires in the Mediterranean with a bit of sensationalism mixed in. That was a long time ago and La Gomera has now completely recovered.

Surprisingly and unexpectedly my blog has just now clocked up over two million visits (see Google's counter on sidebar⇒) as the interest in this blog has grown over the years. While some of the clicks probably are purely accidental, the interest in the island of La Gomera has grown substantially, and there's a lot more information to be found in all kinds of media. 

Unsurprisingly most of my readers came from English speaking countries, but lagomera1.blogspot.com was also read in every corner of the globe. Even some of the international press as well as local and Spanish media have used material from this blog, some with my permission, some without. Anyone is welcome to freely use material from this blog as long as the linked source is quoted as lagomera1.blogspot.com. Indeed sometimes I use material concerning La Gomera from other media, but I always strive to clearly indicate the source with a link to same.

There's also a lot of regular readers, some of whom I may have disappointed over recent years as I don't post that often anymore. Apologies to them, but thankfully there aren't a lot of exciting  affairs in La Gomera to report normally, and I've always tried to steer well clear of minor problems, local politics and expats' antics unless it is necessary. My annual 1st of April news for fools seem to be especially popular and some readers have fallen into the trap. Click this to see a selection of them...

Anyway I hope to keep posting as La Gomera is well worth the effort.

Thanks a million (or two) to you all, and special thanks  to the many readers who commented favourably and to the many new friends that I made through this blog.

I didn't expect that: ONE MILLION visits to this blog

When I started this blog in August 2012 during the devastating La Gomera fire I never expected anything and hadn't a clue about blogging. I just wanted to report what was going on here as there wasn't much information from or about La Gomera in English. The international media didn't bother checking facts, never mind sending correspondents, and just reported La Gomera's disaster as part of other fires in the Mediterranean with a bit of sensationalism mixed in.

Initially Mr. Google tempted me to allow advertising on this blog, from which I earned precisely ONE cent, before quickly realising that I didn't need  ads clutter and the possibility of maybe earning some more cents. So I pulled the advertising, but had I known that I would get to a million views in just over ten years, maybe that was the wrong decision. However I'm just as happy being poor and to still boast on the banner above: Ads-free. INDEPENDENT.

Surprisingly and unexpectedly my blog has now clocked up over one million visits (see counter on sidebar⇒) as the interest in this blog has grown over the years. While some of the clicks probably are purely accidental, the interest in the island of La Gomera has grown substantially. 

Unsurprisingly most of my readers came from English speaking countries, but lagomera1.blogspot.com was also read in every corner of the globe. Even some of the international press as well as local and Spanish media have used material from this blog, some with my permission, some without. Anyone is welcome to freely use material from this blog as long as the linked source is quoted as lagomera1.blogspot.com. Indeed sometimes I use material concerning La Gomera from other media, but I always strive to clearly indicate the source with a link to same.

There's also a lot of regular readers, some of whom I may have disappointed over recent years as I don't post that often anymore. Apologies to them, but thankfully there aren't a lot of exciting  affairs in La Gomera to report, and I've always tried to steer well clear of local politics and expats' antics unless it is unavoidable.

To be honest, as I'm getting older I'm getting lazier and after nearly 1.150 posts I often don't remember what I've already covered and what not. 

So here's a call for help:

If you love La Gomera and would like to contribute, please use the comments function to contact me with a comment not to be published and your contact email and you've got yourself an unpaid job to publish posts with or without your name on this blog. Interesting images are always welcome, too. 

La Gomera is well worth the effort.

Thanks a million to you all, and special thanks  to the many readers who commented favourably and to the many new friends that I made through this blog.

               Anyway, here's to the next million or two of YOU.  Slainte, cheers y salud !

Fire quickly extinguished

The remote mountain village of El Cedro.

A fire broke out in La Gomera's Garajonay national park yesterday at midday affecting 1100 sqm of palm trees, sweet chestnut, heather trees, laurel and brush near the village of El Cedro. Fire brigades as well as national park personnel and police rushed to the scene and the fire was under control about an hour  and a half later, but due to the very dry conditions this winter the area around the outbreak was hosed down as well as a precautionary measure.

The El Cedro valley is normally one of the wettest areas in La Gomera receiving a lot of rain, drizzle and fog, but this winter conditions there, and in the rest of the island, have been exceptionally dry and warm.

Verdant Valle Gran Rey

Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera, March 2013: You'd never think this was a blazing inferno last August.

More fruit trees for fire victims

La Gomera's government will distribute more than 2.300 fruit trees for immediate planting to farmers and residents who lost crops and trees during the devastating fire last summer. The trees will be distributed in the town of Chipude from 11am today, and will cosist of 15 varieties, including apple, almond, cherry, plum, peach, etc..
In several separate distributions in Valle Gran Rey nearly 1500 tropical fruit trees have already been distributed and planted.
More fruit trees will be given away in several locations soon and the total number re-planted will reach well over 5.000 .
UPDATE 8pm: Further goods news today is the ministry for environment's allocation of nearly 580.000 Euros for the repair of damage in La Gomera's forest 

Fruit Trees For Fire Victims

The self-help group 'Plataforma Valle Gran Rey' which was formed after the devastating fires last summer have used some of the donated money to bulk-buy fruit trees (orange, avocado and mango). The first batch was distributed yesterday among members who lost their mature trees due to the blaze and who want to replant. Within only two hours all the trees available were gone and another larger order will be placed soon. 
This laudable initiative will help to make the upper part of Valle Gran Rey soon again the fertile and lush green rural landscape that it was before the fire.

National Parks Threatened By Cutbacks

We all know about the financial situation in Spain and the Canary Islands, and for 2013 even more severe cutbacks in public spending are expected. The budget for the four national parks in the Canary Islands (La Palma, Tenerife, Lanzarote and La Gomera) is proposed to be cut by nearly 75% next year. These cuts have been described as brutal and scientists have warned that this will threaten the mere existence of the internationally acclaimed and unique areas of nature. It would also mean the loss of hundreds of jobs.
For La Gomeras 'Garajonay' national park this will come as a particularly severe blow after the damage caused to it during the devastating fire this summer. To restore the affected areas and to repair damage to its infrastructures the budget for the coming year should have been increased instead of being severely cut. The cutbacks will also mean less protection against fire during the dry summer period for 2013.
There has been a public outcry locally, nationally and internationally. You can help by signing a petition against the cutbacks - just click the following: http://www.change.org/petitions/parlamento-y-gobierno-de-la-comunidad-autónoma-de-canarias-no-al-brutal-recorte-presupuestario-de-los-parques-nacionales-de-canarias?utm_campaign=friend_inviter_modal&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=share_petition&utm_term=18059413  (The English version is found directly below the Spanish one)

Sign of the times ?
(Fire damaged sign and trees in the Garajonay national park, La Gomera)

Sign the petition and enjoy the park while it is still well-kept               .

Demonstration in Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Tomorrow at 12 midday a demonstration is taking place in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, starting from Plaza Weyler (location here:https://maps.google.es/)
The demonstration, which is being organized by the local eco-pressure group 'La Gomera Se Mueve' (= La Gomera on the move), and supported by by various other groups, will call for the investigation of the fires that affected the islands of Tenerife, La Palma and La Gomera. Particularly the blunder made by downgrading the fire on La Gomera in the face of a heat-wave, which subsequently caused the fire to spread and destroy 10%
of La Gomera and 18% of its national park needs to be investigated, according to the organisers. The political 'blame game' that happened between the regional government of La Gomera, the Canary Island's government and the central Spanish administration only made matters worse and will be an issue tomorrow, with 
the motto: 'Mas Nunca', which means 'Never Again' !

The fires on La Gomera were finally declared as extinguished only two weeks ago, after the first rainfalls of the winter. They had started almost three months ago on the 4th of August, eventually spread over a wide area and culminated in a wall of fire that came down the valley here in Valle Gran Rey, damaging/destroying about 100 houses (see previous posts). The fires became more and more difficult to control and even propagated underground through roots and organic material.
The recent rains will speed up recovery and many areas are showing fresh green shoots, but the overall damage to the ecosystem is still considerable, as is the economic damage.

One of the worst affected areas after the fire

Fresh green shoots and new hope in Valle Gran Rey (taken even before the rains)

Benefit Gala

NEW DATES: Dec. 7th + 8th 
On Friday and Saturday, Nov. 2nd + 3rd, a benefit gala with more than 20 participating artists will take place in the harbour of Valle Gran Rey. All tastes will be catered for: From Canarian folk music to pop and salsa and even activities for children. The fun starts a 6pm each day and will continue 'till the early hours of the morning. Tickets are 15 Euros for the two days, one day only costs 10 Euros. All proceeds will go to the victims of the recent fires on La Gomera.
Several fiestas were cancelled during the summer due to the fires, so now is a good time to party again and help the victims at the same time.
NEW DATES: Dec. 7th + 8th 2012
(change of dates was due to inclement weather)

Richard Lee

Missing British citizen Richard Michael Lee: No further developments regarding the investigation have been reported locally. The search continues. Appeal for clues and please help to distribute photograph on the web! (See:HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN ? & British Citizen Missing On La Gomera  & Richard M. Lee still missing + UPDATE July '13) .

Other LA GOMERA NEWS: The government is to contract 89 previously unemployed workers for a 'socio-environmental correction' plan to alleviate and repair damages resulting from the recent forest fires that swept through several communities on La Gomera. More than 400.000 Euros have been allocated for the scheme.

After the fires: La Gomera in the news

The UK Daily 'The Independent' has an interesting piece of news on La Gomera. Read it here:

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/canary-island-forest-fires-all-quiet-in-la-gomera-8182587.html

Hurricane Nadine stronger again

NHC:'HURRICANE CENTER LOCATED NEAR 36.6N  37.8W AT 30/0900Z
PRESENT MOVEMENT TOWARD THE NORTH-NORTHWEST OR 345 DEGREES AT  10 KT
ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE  979 MB
MAX SUSTAINED WINDS  80 KT (150 KM/H) WITH GUSTS TO 100 KT.' 

Nadine could affect the Azores again:

NEWS: La Gomera fires finally declared 'under control'

The remaining smouldering fires have been officially declared 'under control', but work continues to assure that no 'hot spots' remain.

The fires that started more than seven weeks ago damaged a total area of 3000 hectares or 8% of the island. The national park lost 18%, or 720 hectares and more than 100 houses were damaged or destroyed.

The expected rain (see previous post) should end this sad episode and will help nature to recover.

Is it all over ? Political fires now raging !

The firestorm and the hot temperatures may have passed, but politically the storm is only beginning to brew. I'll try and keep out of that and so preserve my independence.

Anyway, the alert level was today reduced to Nr.1 again, which means the island's government is again solely responsible. Same happened before (much discussed) in the face of a heat-wave alert and an almost-extinguished fire. After that, all hell broke loose, and the just sent-home hydro-planes had to be sent back here. This time, however the weather gods are kind and it even rained a few drops last night. The fire is out and what is left smouldering underground may take another while to extinguish, but appears to be definitely under control. The total damage seems dramatic, but of the core-forest only 8% was damaged and most of the island is totally intact. An eminent expert on the type of habitat affected and an expert in forest fires, Professor J.R.Arrevalo, has even stated that human efforts to 'restore' the affected areas after the fire may do do more damage than the fire itself. Most plants and trees affected, he says, have a built- in fire resistance and/or their seeds can withstand fires. The canary palm (phoenix canariensis) even grows stronger after having been 'cleaned by fire'.

Damage to property, crops and livestock is another matter and sincere donations are urgently needed (see previous posts), as the officially-announced aid will not arrive where it is needed most. Also previous experience on the islands of Gran Canaria (severe fires 2007) and la Palma (...2009) has shown that most of the affected people are still waiting for the 'immediate aid' promised by the institutions, and court cases demanding same are still pending.

Here a video of pictures of the recent fires , with some caricatures thrown in:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc_HDBK8QWQ

It was BAD, I'm not trying to hide that fact - but a lot worse was the media-hype.

Thankfully nobody was hurt or worse... or the media would have made the rest of us victims...

LA GOMERA is alive and kicking, and still intact.

The  poor are  worst-hit, as always: See previous posts for direct donations

La Gomera is recovering

The clean-up operation in Valle Gran Rey is in full swing and for this weekend an environmental group has chartered a bus to bring more volunteers to assist.

There are plans being drawn up to restore ALL damaged areas, but obviously some parts in the mature forest will take longer to recover than others. Overall 'only' 10% of the
island was affected and this fact will help recuperation.

The remaining glowing embers, glowing roots and organic material underground are being tackled by digging trenches and by extinguishing and cooling them from the air as well as by fire brigades on the ground - to prevent new fires.

All local fiestas have been suspended for the time being, but the benefit show on Sept. 8th will go ahead.

More help is still needed, especially for those who lost everything and weren't insured.

There are a lot of cases,too, where properties weren't properly registered or fully legal and in those cases even official government aid cannot be claimed. 

...and there are many cases where the victims are  either to shy, too proud, or too modest to ask for help, and for those we need to organize some help discretly and directly.

The newly founded 'plataforma Valle Gran Rey' http://plataformavallegranrey.com/en tries to help those as well, and there are private initiatives, like this one by a German medical doctor who has a clinic in VGR and in his video shows a despairing local man called Domingo (Domingo means Sunday - it all happened during Sunday night 12-08-2012):

http://vimeo.com/47954025

BUT please remember that there is only ONE official account for donations (see my previous post) !!!

Finally here's a link to a video shot in the El Cedro forest, one of the many, many beautiful areas left totally intact:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buhkrrCgIsI

Upper Valle Gran Rey before the fire:

Upper Valle Gran Rey after the fire  ( but I can guarantee you that it soon will look just as before again. Most palm trees will recover, as will lots of fruit trees and I've already seen many new green shoots). The people, however, will need more aid to recover...:

Total damage for the whole island is estimated at over 70 Million Euros, not counting lost revenue, etc. ... That's an awful lot for a small island with only 22.000 inhabitants and an already crisis-damaged, fragile economy.

Update: Nothing much has changed

I promise a more extensive report tomorrow or whenever after. The people 

here still are shell-shocked, but life and laughter continue. I'm helping as a

volunteer as much as I can, but I have little time at the 'ol' computer'.

...and we've entered another heat wave. Hurricane 'Gordon' won't bring 

any rain here, unfortunately. More heat and stronger winds instead.

More good news:

I'm just back from a tour to evaluate the state of affairs and let me

tell you that in many parts of La Gomera NOTHING has changed, in 90% of La Gomera nothing has changed - A MIRACLE !

BUT... there is a lot of work to be done.

We'll come out of this a stronger, a more coherent and intact community with 

a new-found solidarity.

Efforts to entrench the still smouldering fires on, and under-ground continue

and are 'progressing favourably'. 

More about all this ASAP. I'm exhausted, particularly after (yet another) conversation

with locals, some of whom defied evacuation orders and hid to defend their property

with simple means.

Update: Fires on La Gomera island

GOOD NEWS: All roads open again

Clean up operation progressing with many volunteers.

Donations are beginning to come in.

Touristic zones unaffected and business as usual.

Great sense of solidarity and a concerted effort to build a better La Gomera.
Unfortunately there still is a lot of bad and/or sensational, untrue press reports,
which is damaging our fragile and crisis-weakened economy. 

Journalists: STOP spreading unconfirmed or badly researched news, and

COME HERE TO SEE WITH YOUR OWN EYES !!!

If you want to get involved or if you want to donate, click below:

http://plataformavallegranrey.com/en/

La Gomera fire is now almost completely out

+++All hotels, bars, restaurants, shops, etc. are undamaged and open !

It will however take a lot more time until the last glowing embers and glowing roots underground have been fully extinguished.

Most people are back in their homes but 85 houses were burnt in Valle Gran Rey alone and a few more in mountain villages. 

There is a great sense of solidarity here and people are helping each other and are volunteering to clean up after the fire storm.

Slowly (and for some painfully) life is returning to normal and last night there was live music in bars and restaurants and people were relaxing again after what has been a tense

and stressful period of nearly two weeks.

There is NO  danger to tourists or visitors !

+++ new and interesting article (in English !) by 'gomeranoticias' here:
http://www.gomeranoticias.com/article/gomeranoticias-offers-good-news-and-images-areas-unaffected-fire

Many scenic spots and areas were left totally intact, some examples below: