Heavy rains: Government of Bolivia activates climate contingency plan

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – According to official sources, the Bolivian government, together with a group of institutions, activated a plan to respond to different contingencies that may occur due to the heavy rains and river floods that the country is suffering.

Recently, it was reported that heavy rains killed nine people in three departments, seven in an accident in San Lucas, Chiquisaca, and two were swept away by rivers in La Paz and Potosí. With these deaths, there are 23 deaths due to the weather.

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Civil Defense authorities decreed an orange alert (great danger) until Wednesday in almost all country regions.

This Friday in Santa Cruz, part of Cochabamba and the north of La Paz, is expected to go to red alert, said the vice minister of this entity, Juan Carlos Calvimontes.

The official said that the Armed Forces (Armed Forces) presented an immediate disaster response plan to save lives and access to affected areas with humanitarian aid and build camps for victims, among other options.

In this regard, he said that the Ministry of Rural Development and Lands, together with the State Housing Agency, is part of the assessments of damage to crops and homes.

The official acknowledged the work of other government agencies and the Armed Forces in this emergency period, which lasted from December to January 2022.

For its part, the Bolivian Highway Administration reported that there were landslides, mudslides, and slope falls on roads in La Paz, Beni, Cochabamba, and Santa Cruz as a result.

According to the Ministry of Productive Development, crop damage will not be significant. Although it could affect Cochabamba, it will not affect food supply as it is the department most damaged by the weather phenomenon.

Last Tuesday, in San Lucas, Chiqisaca, seven people lost their lives after a car ran aground and fell some 100 meters in the Ch’akicocha sector. The fall was caused by heavy rains, the poor state of the road, and persistent fog.

“We sympathize with the families of the deceased brothers and sisters of San Pedro de Guanaya”, stated in a message from the Mayor’s Office of San Lucas.