Water, water, everywhere

Nor any drop to drink. Nor to flush toilets with. With all the crazy rain we've been having, it's hard to imagine a shortage of water. But last week authorities were so worried that Madden Dam might break, they opened it a bit, creating a huge water flow on the Rio Chagres, which in turn flooded the Canal with tons of water and all kinds of debris, from floating islands to lots and lots of muddy sediment. The filters at the water purification systems were overwhelmed, and to clean them, Panama City shut off its water for a night and a day. Which would have been fine with a little advanced warning, but no one was prepared, no water was stored, and things came to a virtual standstill. Amazing how important water is to the operation of a city! We did have meetings all day at the STRI headquarters in Panama City, toilets became fuller and fuller, more and more stinky, until finally around 4 pm water was turned on again for a bit, to the welcome relief of all. We didn't get water again in Gamboa for a bit longer, and as soon as we did, we filled up some large containers. It does make one a bit worried about the Canal expansion plans to come, maybe it's a good reality check for the effect this degree of sediment would have on water purification systems city-wide. At any rate, next time we'll be better prepared!