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“We decided to evacuate 15 neighboring homes and ask people not to stay nearby the affected areas because there is still a risk of landslide," the Risaralda Governor Tamayo said.
On Tuesday, Pereira City Secretary Alvaro Arias confirmed that at least eight Colombians died and another 25 citizens were injured during a landslide caused by heavy rains in the Risaralda department.
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The alluvium loaded with debris, stones, branches, and mud descended, causing many houses to collapse. The Risaralda Governor Victor Tamayo confirmed the mobilization of emergency services, stressing that saving lives is his administration's priority.
“We decided to evacuate 15 neighboring homes and ask people not to stay nearby the affected areas because there is still a risk of landslide," Tamayo stated, adding that firefighters and police officers have rescued 17 people so far.
The death toll will likely increase as rescuers remove debris, under which many people may have died from suffocation or deep wounds.
Afro-Colombians ����
— Africans in the Americas (@Afro_Americas) February 7, 2022
Colombia is considered to have the fourth largest Black African population in the western hemisphere, after Brazil, Haiti and the United States. pic.twitter.com/nn51vZT1DY
Tamayo assured that he will ask the national government to send food, toiletries, mats, and clothes for those citizens who became homeless after the disaster, whose ravages increased due to the affected areas’ precarious infrastructure.
In Pereira City, the streets connecting Marsella and La Esneda neighborhoods are closed due to another avalanche. Currently, the early warning for the risk of intense rains and landslides is also in force in 14 municipalities.
“I thank all authorities, companies, and citizens who have extended their hand in this emergency. Unity is key to fight this and any other disaster,” Tamayo stressed.
#Colombia #VideoViral #Video An environmental emergency where the culprits are criminal gangs pic.twitter.com/Tg5ZcD5Gou
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) February 8, 2022
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