Río Inabón is one of the 14 rivers in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. With a length of some , it is Ponce's second longest river after Río Jacaguas. It is fed by the Río Anón, Río Guayo (which itself is fed by the Chiquita Brook and the Indalecia Brook) and the Emajagua Brook.Salon Hogar.com-Ponce, Hidrografia It is also fed by Río Bacas and Río de las Raices.Ponce en 1831. Sylvia Zavala Trias. In, "Antepasados Esclavos". Retrieved 11 October 2011. Originating at an altitude of approximately ,Maptest. Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. General Purpose Population Data, Census 2000. Unidad de Sistemas de Información Geográfica, Área de Tecnología de Información Gubernamental, Oficina de Gerencia y Presupuesto. Gobierno de Puerto Rico. Retrieved 25 November 2011. it forms at a higher altitude than any of the other 13 rivers in the municipality, and at one of the highest points of any river in Puerto Rico. With a watershed area covering 38.18 square miles, Río Inabón also has the second largest basin area of any of the municipality's 14 rivers after Río Jacaguas.
Origin and course Río Inabón has its origin at above sea level in Cerro Camacho, in barrio Anón, near Anón's boundary with the municipality of Jayuya.Ponce. Jorge A. Figueroa Irizarry, Director. Ponce History Museum. Released by Professor F. Suarez. Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico. Page 25.Rios de Puerto Rico: Rio Inabon.Ponce Ciudad Señorial: Recursos Naturales. Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce. Retrieved 21 November 2011. The river runs mostly parallel to PR-511.Salvan a un niño de río embravecido. Jason Rodríguez Grafal. La Perla del sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 9 May 2012. Year 30. Issue 1484. Page 4. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
Uses "A provision in The Treaty of Paris of 1898 grants the Serrallés family exclusive rights to the Río Inabón. This river winds through Puerto Rico’s volcanic mountains, and is the exclusive water source for DonQ Rum".DonQ's Historical Timeline: Our Rum Journey. DonQ Heritage. Destileria Serralles, Don Q website. Today Río Inabón is one of the most popular rivers for swimming in southern Puerto Rico.Refrescante paseo por los ríos de la zona Sur. Carmen Cila Rodríguez. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 15 July 2009. Page 26. Retrieved 2 November 2011. Some 10 private reservoirs in the Ponce area are fed by the waters of Río Inabón.Informe Ecologico de Flora y Fauna, Proyecto Gasoducto del Sur: Peñuelas, Ponce, Juana Díaz, Santa Isabel, Salinas. For: Proyecto Gasoducto del Sur - Peñuelas, Ponce, Juana Díaz, Santa Isabel, Salinas. By: ENSR (Piscataway, NJ) - AEE (Autoridad de Energia Electrica). Page 19. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
Environmental contamination In January 2011, Puerto Rico Representative Víctor Vassallo Anadón presented a bill into the Puerto Rico House of Representatives that would improve the sewer system of residents near the river to avoid contaminating it with sewer waters. 11 January 2011. El sur a la vista. Ponce Puerto Rico. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
Endangered species The fern Thelypteris inabonensis found at the headwaters of Río Inabón and at the Toro Negro State Forest has been identified by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as an endangered species.Caribbean Endangered Species Map. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Page "Ponce (2-2)." Retrieved 18 August 2013.
Flow The flow of water in the river is controlled by the floodgates at Toa Vaca Lake, located in the municipality of Villalba.Desalojan residentes al Sureste de Ponce. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2011. Río Inabon has a discharge of 15,000 ft3/s.Ferdinand Quiñones and Karl G. Johnson. The Floods of May 17–18, 1985 and October 6–7, 1985 in Puerto Rico. U.S. Geological Survey. Open File Report 87-123. Prepared in Conjunction with the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources, Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board, and the Puerto Rico Highway Authority. San Juan, Puerto Rico. 1987. Page 15. The Inabón has been known to overflow easily in times of heavy rains.Lideran dramático rescate en el Inabón. Jason Rodríguez Grafal. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Retrieved 5 October 2011. Several rescues have taken place when the river has increased its level rapidly, a phenomenon known as flash flood.Salvan a un niño de río embravecido. Jason Rodríguez Grafal. La Perla del sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 9 May 2012. Year 30. Issue 1484. Page 4. Retrieved 9 May 2012. Due to its proximity to the eastern end of Aeropuerto Mercedita, the river has affected the operation of the airport in times of heavy rains. This was the case with the hurricane Maria in September 2017.Trastoca al sur remanente de María. Reinaldo Millán and Jason Rodríguez. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
Course of the river The following table summarizes the course of Río Inabón in terms of roads crossed. Roads are listed as the river flows from its origin in the mountains of Barrio Anón, north of the city of Ponce, to the Caribbean Sea in the south (N/A = Data not available):
No. Barrio Road Road'skm marker NBI IDNational Bridge Inventory Data: Puerto Rico, Ponce. James Baughn. BridgeReports.com 2018. Accessed 25 November 2018. Bridge name (if any) Direction (of bridge traffic) Coordinates Notes1Anón Unnamed not marked 23401 Unnamed Both 0.1 km East of PR-511, km 12.7, on Unnamed Road*2Anón PR-511 12.5* 27031 Unnamed Both 0.3 km North of Calle Guarayo3Anón Unnamed not marked 29441 Unnamed Both 0.1 km West of PR-511, km 12.7, on Unnamed Road (0.1 km north of Calle Guayaro)*4Anón PR-511 11.7* 29421 Unnamed Both 0.1 km South of Camino Rosaly. (From this point southward, Río Inabón runs on the west side of PR-511)5Real Calle Sector Jurutungo not marked 29431 Unnamed Both At Charca Puente del Agua, 0.1 km West of PR-511, km 12.65, on Camino Sector Jurutungo; 0.3 km North of Capilla Catolica San Martin*6Coto Laurel PR-14 9.8 22041 Unnamed Both 0.5 km NE of Barrio Coto Laurel; 0.1 km west of INT PR-14 & PR-511.7Sabana Llana PR-52 94.3 N/A Unnamed Southbound PR-52 SB in Municipality of Juana Diaz8Sabana Llana PR-52 94.3 N/A Unnamed Northbound PR-52 NB in Municipality of Juana Diaz9Sabana Llana C. Ramal/Av. San Cristobal N/A 25141 Unnamed Both Calle Ramal (Calle Laredo) is accessible via Ave. San Cristobal located behind Hospital San Cristobal; Bridge is parallel to the PR-52 km 94.3, bridges10Capitanejo,Vayas PR-1 120.4 251 Unnamed Both 0.1 km west of PR-507, Ponce, immediately east of Aeropuerto Mercedita (6.5 km E of Ponce). Bridge has Ponce's Barrio Vayas to its west and Juana Diaz's Barrio Capitanejo to its east. *Marker requires field verification.
See also List of rivers of Puerto Rico List of rivers of Ponce
References
External links
USGS Geographic Names Information Service YouTube video of Rio Inabon at Km 6.7 of PR-511 on 16 October 2010.