%PDF-1.7 1 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Outlines 2 0 R /Pages 3 0 R >> endobj 2 0 obj << /Type /Outlines /Count 0 >> endobj 3 0 obj << /Type /Pages /Kids [6 0 R ] /Count 1 /Resources << /ProcSet 4 0 R /Font << /F1 8 0 R /F2 9 0 R /F3 10 0 R /F4 11 0 R /F5 12 0 R /F6 14 0 R >> /ExtGState << /GS1 15 0 R /GS2 16 0 R >> >> /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] >> endobj 4 0 obj [/PDF /Text ] endobj 5 0 obj << /Producer (dompdf 1.0.2 + CPDF) /CreationDate (D:20250809131741+00'00') /ModDate (D:20250809131741+00'00') >> endobj 6 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 7 0 R >> endobj 7 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1611 >> stream xWMs6ϯj {D$+Y[.;ٍ"1$V$@M?$OUB*T-_w~ "Ef_ Kkz,-{#O@TNւ1X>T=}2GɅNg,UZ^ UW緊/x3EW̹oޮbx;1+ šbuRV2.4M_%~x oa5*RA͸3ߥ^KF_Ny#hPjjR~4 O R!l?89:xmk΋/&, JuVF>/+"A/( . ,>~/ ~ZEMqA!Oܽ@u7K7Pc'=y̭~OVPL~*z4 |JˀZn`C'ŖvJ? mإ)ɢySܐQ]-a!Ԗap5[GXvҶM ݈WFV`8s%D&az)>8CJ`:9R-N;šr.CEP2eI Bۊ$CC]iIPegAVy0k7TaxeocV&QE~%iIy-G1DQ'Eֱ)~ #ڛpF(`E&Q AJ"0ȁPct.i*0Na}bV;`chBX"ѬRUE){;srr5(9+s_(L3Y+$0~;ٴ;pct/C1rm]bv 6b>;:fi"Ur˝ZDJfjAB5zV:,I)gU:e+P_F҆@NCtf(^/=`F.b-HiYsE CJZw1Y!,wCWX:3ZXgY4Hr#7G]N㸭Z?&O4kdHҲ8*Dq"?Kx8{fbaGx޵$;Ah^#(aZYea戙7!5ۚ_NV=q{BZ8Aj\v? lyv.]:ŝ0,\_bg*DoՌު4c>}6^|eAl}=ZL)c 4AZCiR"荹,)bڷP@A+=D4$S~rw}&rS\nɲ7'T٥ֵ1rqAw_-MzY5OCP\!ZSsq=C]gKQh?ޟf x0ہDev4*_3󏼈f V\ zIYy]o15ƭ[/揦0<_KE.b̡' endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Times-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F5 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 13 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F6 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 0.3 >> endobj 16 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 0.3 >> endobj xref 0 17 0000000000 65535 f 0000000009 00000 n 0000000074 00000 n 0000000120 00000 n 0000000370 00000 n 0000000399 00000 n 0000000548 00000 n 0000000651 00000 n 0000002335 00000 n 0000002442 00000 n 0000002550 00000 n 0000002660 00000 n 0000002773 00000 n 0000002889 00000 n 0000002918 00000 n 0000003028 00000 n 0000003087 00000 n trailer << /Size 17 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R /ID[<7435e3ca1908600a1592e609e9b5afe4><7435e3ca1908600a1592e609e9b5afe4>] >> startxref 3146 %%EOF Benza reports on mudslide assistance | Caring Magazine

Vol. #28

Grace Uncovered

Read Issue

Latest Impact StoriesView All

Popular Topics

PopularView All

Benza reports on mudslide assistance

February 28, 2005
2 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Listen to this article

by Chad Benza – 



MUDSLIDES IN LA CONCHITA destroyed 16 homes and killed 10 people. The Salvation Army provided assistance to victims and disaster relief workers.

A soldier and employee of the Santa Barbara Corps, Chad served with the emergency disaster service team at the January 10, 2005 La Conchita mudslide. Ten people were killed and 16 homes destroyed.

Having grown up in a small town five miles from La Conchita, I was connected to the small community and its residents. The mudslide happened a little after 1:00 p.m., and within three hours of the disaster, The Salvation Army had set up a canteen, with the Santa Barbara Corps alternating cooking and serving meals with the Ventura Corps.

We were escorted to the scene by the Highway Patrol. Seeing part of the town swallowed by 400,000 tons of dirt left me speechless. My first thought was to find out if two of my close friends had made it out of their homes safely; I was told by a firefighter that they were still missing. Later, I found out that they had died in the mudslide.

I tried to remain calm as I stood at the base of the slide and watched as the search and rescue teams pulled bodies from the mud one by one. I stood with friends who had lost everything: cars, clothes, pictures, pets—everything was gone. Tears of confusion, anger, anxiety, and stress were all in the tired eyes of my friends. We formed prayer circles and prayed. God provided me with an abundance of comfort so I was able to provide it to the victims.

As I stood with my friends around 3:00 a.m. Wednesday morning, I realized that in all the chaos, confusion, destruction, and despair—God was there. He was in the prayer circles, he was in the hugs, he was in smiles, and he ran the rescue operation. We were his tools. I praise God for The Salvation Army, as we were able to help so much in such a desperate time.

Download this page as a PDF

You May Also Like