During the past few weeks, 33 people have died as a result of the rainy
season that has been tormenting large parts of Colombia. Flooding and
storms have forced 70,000 people to leave their homes.
According to representatives of relief agencies, there are still five people missing and 800 houses were completely destroyed by of floods and avalanches that followed the rainfall. Another 12,000 houses are reported to be severely damaged.
Carlos Márquez, director of Colombia’s state relief agency, said the weather may become worse in the coming days and that his people are on high alert in case more emergencies occur.
The rainy season began in March and has so far caused emergencies in 23 of the country’s 32 departments. Colombian meteorologists expect the rainy season to continue until mid-June.
Colombia, because of its position in the tropics, has two rainy seasons (winter) and two dry seasons (summer).
5,000 disconnected from the world in Valle
Approximately 5,000 inhabitants of three villages in the Valle del Cauca department were disconnected from the rest of the world Sunday after landslides blocked a number of roads. The mayor of one of the municipalities called on relief agencies to bring heavy machinery to attend the emergency and allow food supplies and water to reach the villages.
Easter rains in Bogotá
Bogotá, while already having its busiest day of the year with approximately 500 thousand cars on the road on Easter Sunday with the return of its inhabitants from their holiday destinations, was hammered by severe rains.
The local Fire Department reported numerous flooded cellars and flooding of Calle 9, Carrera 7 and the motorway on several points (Photos by Justin Harris)
