San Rafael Falls

The San Rafael Falls (Spanish: La Cascada San Rafael) were, until 2 February 2020, the tallest falls in Ecuador. The 130-metre (430 ft) falls were located on the Coca River in Cayambe Coca Ecological Reserve until a collapse of the river bed upstream of the falls diverted the river underneath the band of hard rock that had originally formed the lip of the waterfall,[2] connecting to a cave below and creating a new natural bridge, possibly surpassing Xianren Bridge as the longest in the world.[3] The falls were a significant tourist attraction with a recorded 30,000 visitors during 2019.[4]

San Rafael Falls
Location	Sucumbíos and Napo, Ecuador
Coordinates	0°06′13″S 77°34′53″W
Type	Tiered plunges (until 2020)
Total height	131 m (430 ft) (until 2020)[1]
Number of drops	2 (until 2020)
Total width	30 m (98 ft) (until 2020)[1]
Average width	23 m (75 ft) (until 2020)[1]
Run	46 m (151 ft) (until 2020)[1]
Watercourse	Coca River
Average flow rate	400 m^3/s (14,000 cu ft/s) [1]

There has been discussion as to whether the riverbed collapse and subsequent disappearance of the falls is connected with the operation of a hydroelectric plant some 20 km upstream. There are concerns too about how the altered hydrology of the river may affect its ecology.[2] Additionally, the river effectively bypassed the resistant rock of the brink of the falls, causing a sudden river rejuvenation, which in turn has resulted in very rapid headward erosion of a steep-sided gorge upstream of the sinkhole, threatening numerous structures upstream, including the dam for the aforementioned hydroelectric plant.[5]

See also

• List of waterfalls by flow rate

References

1. "San Rafael, Cascada de, Ecuador – World Waterfall Database". www.worldwaterfalldatabase.com. Retrieved 2020-04-08.
2. "Why Did Ecuador's Tallest Waterfall Suddenly Disappear?". The Wire. 4 April 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
3. "Sudden Birth of a Large Natural Bridge in Ecuador — Possibly the Longest in the World!". 10 April 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
4. "Country's largest waterfall stops flowing after a giant sink hole swallows the Coca River". CuencaHighlife. 6 February 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
5. José Paz Cardona, Antonio (12 August 2020). "Ecuador Races for Emergency Infrastructure as River's Collapse Threatens Dam". Retrieved December 6, 2020.