La Reunion Resorts in Guatemala, where the The Guatemala Stella Artois Open on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica is played, has been devastated after nearby Fuego Volcano recently erupted. Ash and dust have completely engulfed the course, which hosts a March event on that tour. The eruption has killed at least 75 people in Guatemala.
The photos and videos are terrifying and devastating.
WOW... Shocking footage of the #FuegoVolcano erupting a few hours ago in #guatamala huge ash clouds have been piled into the air... #extremeweather #volcanic report; @valencia_israel pic.twitter.com/D7IBWEITbi
— WEATHER/ METEO WORLD (@StormchaserUKEU) June 4, 2018
Just received some photos from family in #Guatemala where #FuegoVolcano 🌋erupted. Not too long ago my cousin was just married here. Looks like ash and pyroclastic flow went straight for the resort. pic.twitter.com/rm26hA6m9T
— Justin Long (@crockpotveggies) June 4, 2018
Wow - view from La Reunion Golf Course... pic.twitter.com/MyQdiEbikj
— Matthew Watson (@Matthew__Watson) June 3, 2018
Visited La Reunion golf course while on a class trip to Guatemala back in grad school. It’s the only time I’ve been on a course where a member arrived by helicopter. Received this before and after photo today from Doug Maxwell following the eruption, total devastation pic.twitter.com/IxSvrllvv2
— Paul Koch (@uwpaul) June 4, 2018
Here's PGA Tour Latinoamerica president Jack Warfield on the devastation.
In the case of La Reunion, the owners of the course created something spectacular, a golf course set on an incredible piece of property with a volcano as a backdrop. But for La Reunion, the course wasn't built just to attract golf-playing tourists. The owners also saw the opportunity to create an enhanced quality of life for the citizens. A resort like La Reunion employs hundreds of people from the area, giving them steady employment. One thing La Reunion did early on was finance the building of a new school in the community because it saw a need.
Now, people are dead or missing because of the volcano. I know the course and the clubhouse sustained severe damage, the school is undoubtedly affected and many residents' property is destroyed or completely gone. The damage is just so widespread, approximately six miles long through the valley. Golf seems pretty unimportant right now in Guatemala. Instead, next steps are under consideration as officials devise an emergency plan in the coming weeks, hoping to help with cleanup before Guatemala's rainy season arrives That's important because the rain will just hamper relief efforts that much more.
Guatemalan Jose Toledo is playing in this week's Bupa Match Play in Mexico and will give at least some of the money he makes ($10 per birdie and $20 per eagle) toward helping cleanup efforts.
"The damage is incalculable and irreparable to beautiful people who live in a beautiful country," he told PGATour.com. "This community specifically and La Reunion have meant so much to me at the beginning of my professional career. Every time I visited the course, the club's directors, members and employees gave me their affection and allowed me to prepare myself in the best way to grow as a player."
The death toll continues to rise in Guatemala.
Wink of the CBS eye to Golfweek
