We have already written that the rainy season in the Amazon is coming to an end… but, apparently, that was too soon. From the early morning of April 29 to the morning of April 30, nature brought down a record amount of precipitation on Tarapoto. A powerful downpour was accompanied by thunder and lightning, and wind gusts reached 35 m/s.
Hundreds of videos and photos with views of the flooded main square and the stormy rivers that flooded the streets have spread all over the Internet. Most public and private institutions were forced to close, and schools canceled classes. Electricity has gone out in some areas of the city. Many shops and houses were heavily flooded, several areas suffered landslides, and motorcycles on the streets were literally washed away. In our Ecolodge Cordillera Escalera, fortunately, all buildings and paths are perfectly adapted to such cataclysms, and therefore did not suffer in any way.
Over the past few decades, the weather in Tarapoto broke its own records for the amount of precipitation several times. For example, in the very beginning of 2020, on January 23, the precipitation level reached 152.5 mm/day. At that time, the elements brought many troubles: houses were destroyed, and roads were washed away by landslides.
At the same time, it turns out that Tarapoto is not the rainiest city in Peru! According to the SENAMHI meteorological service, which has been researching natural phenomena in the country for more than 53 years, the most rain falls in the city of Kinsemil (Esp. “fifteen thousand”). The average annual figure in the period from 1961 to 1980 was 7,353.9 mm. The city, located in the Cusco region, even owes its name to precipitation. They say that in the 50s there was a time when the rains poured so heavily that the annual precipitation level reached 15,100 mm – and since then this name has been fixed for the city. If we talk about the rainiest city in the world, then the generally recognized leader is the Indian city of Cherapunji. Judging by the precipitation indicators, there are no sunny days in this city at all.
Thankfully, our Ecolodge Cordillera Escalera is not in India, but in Peru – and we have enough sun! Even in the rainy season, it pleases us and our guests.