Fifteen dead, including three minors, 34 injured and more than 100 people affected was on Tuesday night the preliminary balance of the tragedy that he experienced since morning Risaraldadue to heavy rains.
A downpour caused a landslide that buried six houses and affected another 20 in the sector of The Esnedaon the border between Pereira and Dosquebradas, and also caused the overflow of the Otún River.
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The emergency, according to the inhabitants of the sector, occurred around 6:25 in the morning, and since then the rescue work began, led by emergency agencies, accompanied by the community, but these had to be suspended in several opportunities because in the capital of Risaralda, it practically did not stop raining all day.
The mayor of Pereira, Carlos Mayanpointed out that about 25 years ago a similar emergency occurred in the area, which suffers from rising rivers during the rainy seasons.
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Winter tragedy in Risaralda left 15 dead and 34 injured.
“The banks of the Otún River have been invaded many times and although we have evicted it so that the families do not experience that risk, many people return. Now we are focused on recovering the bodies and finding more survivors, and then we will think about relocation, “said the local president.
However, this is not an irregular neighborhood or an invasion and the sector has always been recognized by the local authorities of Pereira.
According to the Mayor’s Office, the tragedy occurred due to saturation of the land, after more than 12 continuous hours of rain.
“The triggering factor of the emergency was a rupture in the canal of the ditch that, when it collapsed, generated an accumulation and constant flow of water towards the hillside,” they reported from the administration.
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The Dosquebradas firefighters, who were the first to arrive at the scene of the tragedy, since the area borders both municipalities, pointed out that the risk of a major disaster in the area continues as the river flow is still very high.
That is why they evacuated all the houses located two blocks from the affected sector.
Due to the large number of injured people, the hospital network declared a yellow alert. One of the hospitals where they have received more patients is the San Jorge hospital, from where a preliminary report was delivered.
“Among the injured there are two in surgery, one with a diagnosis of pneumothorax and another with trauma to the lower limbs with cardiovascular risk,” reported the hospital manager, Maria Ellen Ruiz.
There was no record of a tragedy like these almost five years ago in the Coffee Region, when the rains caused a landslide in April 2017, in Manizales, which left 17 people dead. And the most recent precedent in the country was in Mallama, Nariño, when a landslide in November 2021 also left 17 victims.
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The shocking images of the winter tragedy in Pereira.
the faces of tragedy
Families, homes and businesses were destroyed and buried in the rubble. The stories heard amid the rush of relief agencies and the community helping to search for survivors or fatalities are shocking.
“Three uncles, cousins and nephews lived in that area. My niece was saved because she was awake, but the girl (her daughter) died because the wall of the house fell while she was still in bed. That is very hard that one has to see the family like this”, said one of the neighbors of the place.
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One of her uncles also died of this woman, and she has four other relatives in the San Rafael de Pereira clinic.
Other families did not lose one of their members, but lost everything they had. That is the case of Pedro Lugo, who lived with his wife and his children in one of the houses on Avenida del Río and Calle 26.
Of his business, a junkyard, he only has memories. “The collapse took everything where my business was, I was left with nothing, but thank God my family and I are alive,” she narrated.
Winter tragedy in Risaralda left 15 dead and 34 injured.
Lugo pointed out that at 6:30 this morning everything was screaming and desolation. “When we went out to see what happened, people were running everywhere. I approached and we managed to rescue several, but later the authorities arrived and we let them do their thing.
It was very sad to see that you lost your lifelong neighbors,” said the man who has lived in this sector of the Risaraldense capital for more than 50 years.
A few blocks from the scene of the events, concern and sadness also abound. Two blocks down from the place lives José Quintero, who lost several members of his family.
“My son-in-law and brother died, and my daughter is in a very serious hospital. When I went down and saw all that destroyed it was very hard. My son-in-law had a little store and my daughter was lying down because they get up very early to make arepas; she is delicate, but fine”, commented Quintero.
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The authorities expect this Wednesday, from 6 am, to continue with the search, since it is not ruled out that there are more missing persons, and debris removal, and they have said that they will take measures to relocate some families who were affected. But the jobs will depend on the state of the weather.
LAURA USMA CARDONA
For the time
Pereira
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