Shell | |
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town | |
 A view of Shell from the GMU campus | |
  Shell | |
| Coordinates:01°30′19″S78°3′46″W / 1.50528°S 78.06278°W /-1.50528; -78.06278 | |
| Country | Ecuador |
| Province | Pastaza |
| Canton | Mera |
| Elevation | 1,067 m (3,501 ft) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
| Climate | Af |
Shell (alsoShell Mera) is a city located on the western edge of theEcuadorian Amazon and in the easternfoothills of theAndes. It is located about 94 miles (151 km) southeast ofQuito, and roughly 4 miles (6.4 km) west of the provincial capital,Puyo. Its name comes from theRoyal Dutch Shell corporation.
Shell Mera was established in 1937 as aShell Oil Company base.[1] The base consisted of little more than several basic shacks and a 5,000-foot (1,500 m)airstrip. It was operated as part of Shell'sprospecting efforts in the region. The base was located near someIndian tribes who strongly opposed the exploitation of resources found in their ancestral territories. The Indians attacked Shell several times, resulting in the deaths of several employees. The oil company abandoned the base in 1948.[2] However, it is more likely that business prospects had more to do with the decision. It was during this time that theMiddle East rose in prominence in the oil industry, since it was becoming much more productive. After ten years of prospecting in Ecuador, the oil company had not produced any oil from the region.[2]
Sometime around 1949, Shell was reoccupied byMission Aviation Fellowship.MAF recognized the importance of Shell due to itsairstrip and road access to Quito. They used it as their main base of operations formission work in Ecuador, and it was also the home base of MAF pilotsNate Saint and Johnny Keenan.
In 1954 Saint, a former member of theU.S. Army, welcomed GeneralJames Doolittle to Shell. Doolittle was anArmy Air Forcesaviator who rose to fame during what became known as"Doolittle's Raid" overTokyo in 1942. General Doolittle was visiting Ecuador for then-PresidentEisenhower on a fact-finding mission for theCIA.[citation needed]
World-wide attention focused on Shell in January 1956 at the news of the disappearance of Saint and four other missionaries –Jim Elliot,Pete Fleming,Ed McCully, andRoger Youderian. They had been trying to reach theHuaorani tribe, and had been makingaerial reconnaissance missions. When they landed in Huaorani territory they were killed by the natives, their bodies thrown into theCuraray River. Once again, Shell served as a base of operations, this time for the families of the victims and rescue workers.
Two years later, in 1958, the Hospital Vozandes Del Oriente opened its doors as the first hospital in that region of Ecuador. The hospital was the dream of Nate Saint, who donated both land and time to work on its construction before his death in 1956. It served an estimated 65,000 people who lived on the eastern side of the Andes and in the jungle. In 1985 a new Hospital Vozandes was opened on the other side of the Motolo River, and the old hospital was converted to a guest house, lasting until 2007 when weather andtermites forced it to be torn down. The new Hospital Vozandes Del Oriente was closed at the end of 2013, after 55 years of service in Pastaza.
In August 1964, Nate Saint Memorial School opened in Shell for missionary children. The school was founded by Charlotte Dillon Swanson, wife of Wallace Swanson, a missionary physician at the HCJB Hospital Voz Andes. She began by teaching her own children at home in 1962 and later expanded the school to include other missionary children. After she raised money for a building she named the school in memory of Nate Saint.[3]
Today, Shell is a town of around 10,000 people, with many business enterprises, schools, churches, hotels and restaurants, and a hospital. There is also a large military base (El Fuerte Militar Amazonas), which serves as headquarters for the 17th Jungle Brigade, as well as EWIAS (Escuela de Iwias Crnl. Gonzalo Barragán) jungle warfare school.[4]
The airstrip remains operational and continues to serve the region as theRío Amazonas Airport (PTZ), which is owned by themilitary and used as a base. The airport is also still a major base of operations for theMAF.[citation needed]
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