On Tuesday, the governor of Colombia’s northern department of Santander, Horacio Serpa, told W Radio that 10,000 families in his department have been affected by the rainy season. Serpa also said that the department is having difficulty finding adequate shelter for these people.
According to Serpa, the main roads between Bucaramanga and Bogota, and Bucaramanga and Venezuela remain open, but they have had problems with some secondary roads.
In a report dated December 28, 2010, The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs declares, “The number of people directly affected by heavy rains grew to 2,217,226. So far 304 are reported dead.” The report also states that “324,634 houses were damaged.”
The governor thanked the Red Cross and other volunteers for their aid after the rainy season.