Nine of Colombia’s departments are in a state of high alert for risk of landslides, according to Ministry of the Interior Risk Management Director Carlos Ivan Marquez.
W Radio reported Monday that weather conditions threaten further disasters in the departments of Antioquia, Caldas, Valle del Cauca, Quindio, Tolima, Santander, Norte de Santander, Boyaca and Cundinamarca.
Marquez said that the entire zone of the upper and lower Magdalena River basin is on alert for the possibility of the river overflowing its banks and flooding the region, and that there are “worrisome situations in Valle del Cauca, Risaralda and Antioquia” due to similar fears with the Cauca River.
Marquez said Sunday that the number of people victimized by this winter season has reached nearly 3 million, and that over 1,000 municipalities in 28 departments have been affected.
Ninety three deaths so far this year, 69 of which occurred during the month of April, the month most adversely affected by the rainy season.
Fourteen national roads and various airports were closed over Holy Weekend due to the disastrous weather, with conditions exceeding the state’s capacity to deal with the scale of the problem.
On Thursday, President Juan Manuel Santos promised to commit $8.4 million of this year’s national budget to assist those affected by the rainy season.
The president will report to Colombians Monday night on measures the government plans to take regarding the disaster.