At least eight people dead, eight injured and several missing left an avalanche of mud and water that occurred in keep mein the department of Cundinamarca, after the heavy rains on Monday.
“At the moment we have the sighting of six fatalities, we are conducting a census to establish if we have more missing persons,” said the delegate for the Cundinamarca fire department, Captain Álvaro Farfán, who added that 35 people were evacuated from the village of Naranjal, where the tragedy occurred.
However, as the hours passed, the number of fatalities increased to eight.
The authorities have not been able to establish the number of disappeared, but the governor of Cundinamarca, Nicolás García, stated: “We have many missing persons (…) including several minors,” and local media say that the number could reach 20.
Farfán added that the avalanche was caused by the overflow of several streams due to the downpours that fell on Monday night in the Quetame area, a municipality located 62 kilometers southeast of Bogotá.
“The death that reaches Quetame, Cundinamarca, demonstrates the urgent need to order the territory around the water and free up its spaces in the POT Plans of the municipalities. Mayors and mayors must prioritize this principle”said President Gustavo Petro at dawn.
According to the first reports from the authorities, the avalanche also swept away several houses, a bridge and also caused the closure of the highway that goes from Bogotá to Villavicencio, capital of the Meta department and one of the country’s agricultural pantries.
The Colombian Air Force (FAC) indicated for its part that before the closure of the highway it will send a reconnaissance plane to the area to try to establish from the air the magnitude of what happened.
While the relief authorities advance the rescue work and search for missing persons In the area, the road to Llano presents total closure.
Camilo Parrado, mayor of that municipality, mentioned that several of the victims were evacuated from their homes and that they will remain in a transit shelter.
BRIEFCASE
