When And How?

It was the November of 1985 that would change the face of this city and the lives of its citizens forever. When everyone least expected it to rain, the clouds gathered over the sky of Villa Epecuen and it rained like anything. Though it is believed that the years of downpour had aggravated the situation as the drainage system wasn’t up to the mark and passive management was to be blamed for it. A dam built to safeguard the town against any potential danger was ruptured on the day of November 10, 1985. The water levels in the city began to rise rapidly i.e. a centimeter per hour. Within two weeks the city was 3 meters deep underwater.

After The Flood


As it is clearly visible in this picture, the extremely beautiful city which was once a top tourist spot was now in a shambles.  Everyone had to evacuate the place and there was absolutely nothing the authorities could do to bring Villla Epecuen back to life. Keep scrolling to see how things used to be before the flood and the aftermath after the havoc the flood had caused.

Picture From The ’70s

The dramatic difference in these two pictures is the sad reality of Villa Epecuen. The photograph held by this man in his hands was clicked almost 5 decades ago in the 1970s. It’s almost unrecognizable. It looks almost as if these are the pictures of two different places. But you can count upon us, as these two pictures show the exact location of Villa Epecuen. A place once so exuberant and full of life is now nothing but a Ghost town. And where did all the things that the people left behind go? We’ll answer all these questions but one at a time is the way to go.

In Vain

More than 30 years have gone by but it only feels like yesterday to the survivors of the flood. Even though there were no casualties and not a single person had lost their life but the impact of the flood had left the victims traumatized, something they haven’t recovered from till date. How could they? They had lost everything, their homes, cars, jobs, businesses that too overnight. It was something they hadn’t imagined even in their worst nightmare but unfortunately, it was their reality that they had lived. The psychological toll it took on them might remain forever, particularly in the older inhabitants ho have spent a lifetime in Villa Epecuen who now struggles to adapt with their new life and their new world.

Time To Leave

Even in the ordinary times when we have to move out of our hoes and switch to a new place be it for a new job or better opportunities, we tend to feel low as there are a lot of sweet memories attached to a place. Imagine what would have gone through the citizens of Villa Epecuen when they had to leave their homes and their town in the wake of a flood that destroyed everything precious to them. Moreover, they had to move to a place they didn’t have good relations with.

A Difficult Move

It wasn’t a choice they made, it was their only choice left. At last, they had to evacuate the place unaware that they would never make it back again. It was the need of the situation and the residents were asked to seek refuge in the closest region to Villa Epecuen which happened to be Carhue. It was a difficult move as the relations between the people of these two places were cold. As Villa Epecuen was closer to the lake and enjoyed greater revenues in the face of tourism which indirectly strangled the growth and economy of Carhue, so the people in Carhue weren’t much welcoming.