Cartagena floods after heavy rains

Several parts of Cartagena are currently under water following heavy downpours, including three electricity substations, leaving around 80 neighborhoods without power, reports El Universal.

Local authorities are assessing the damage and response needs of local communities as canals have overflowed and pipes around the popular tourist destination have burst.

Water levels reached around 5 feet in the neighborhoods of Villa Rosita, Las Palmeras and San Pedro, according to reports.

Last week the Red Cross reported that the death toll for this year’s rainy season in Colombia is now 97, and that 1 million people have been affected.

According to the director of the Colombian Red Cross, Carlos Ivan Marquez, nearly one million people in 28 of 32 departments suffered damages to their lands or homes caused by the rains.

Colombian meteorology institute Ideam predicts that the La Niña effect, which has caused the unusually heavy rains, will be active at least until the first trimester of 2011, bringing more rain over the next months.

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