Ideam warns of increased rainfall this weekend - Other Cities - Colombia

After a week of heavy rains in several regions of the country, which even left several tragedies, The Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (Ideam) pointed out that this weekend there will be an increase in precipitation.

This is why the authorities are calling to activate all emergency protocols, especially in risk areas, in order to avoid tragedies like the one that happened this week in Manizales, where a landslide left three people dead.

The rains, explained Yolanda González, director of the entity, will increase significantly, especially in the center and south of the country.

These precipitations, he added, “come from South America. Heavy rains are expected accompanied by electrical storms.”

According to the IDEA, the departments with the highest risk are Cauca, Nariño, Putumayo, Caquetá and Huila.

(Also: ‘Disasters are not natural; the country needs a geologist per municipality’)

However, we are not yet in the rainy season and we are in a phase that environmental and emergency authorities call less rainy season. However, rainfall has increased due to different meteorological phenomena that occur in the region.

In fact, some regions of the country are being hit by fires, like the one that happened this week on the San Marcos hill in Boyacá, which consumed more than 100 hectares.

(Also read: They find the last fatality reported in the Pereira tragedy)

The rains, for their part, have mainly hit the Pacific, the Andean zone and the Coffee Growing Region, which has suffered two tragedies due to landslides, one in Pereira and the other in Manizales.

From January 1 to date, some 2,849 families (11,733 people) have been affected by heavy rains and at least 27 people have lost their lives.

The first rainy season of the year in our country is expected to officially begin at the end of March.

Medellín: increased vehicle sales between 2021 and 2022 - Medellín - Colombia

While on social networks citizens complain about traffic jams and criticize the measures of the authorities to manage the demand for mobility in Medellin, the sale of cars does not stop.

Figures from the National Association for Sustainable Mobility (Andemos) indicate that 2021 closed with a high figure of 250,000 new vehicles marketed in the country reaching almost the figure of before the pandemic (263,320).

In the ‘top 6’ of cities, the Aburrá valley appears with three municipalities.

The first is Medellín (position 3), where they bought 17,998 units that year, 23.7% more than in 2020 (14,545). It is followed by Envigado (position 5) with 12,446 cars purchased and Sabaneta (position 6) with 11,496 units.

And 2022 started with the same dynamic. According to the license plate information provided by the National Traffic Registry (Runt) and analyzed by Fenalco and Andi, in January of this year 17,391 new vehicles were registered in the country, of which 3,273 were registered in the valley of Aburrá.

(Also read: Daniel Quintero’s complaints at the IACHR spark controversy in Medellín)

Neither the rise in the cost of living, nor political uncertainty curb the appetite of Antioquians to have a car

“From Fenalco Antioquia we have identified several reasons why people are prioritizing the private vehicle, which are: avoid contagion of covid-19, have plan B for the peak and plateas a work tool through passenger transport platforms and finally looking to save time and money, since they can transport the family to their workplaces, children to educational institutions and to travel on vacations”, he said. Claudia Bustamante, Economic Director of Fenalco Antioquia.

For the economist, the demand that the sector has had shows that people are betting on the private vehicle, because the sector has been with an important dynamic in sales.

“Neither the rise in the cost of living, nor the political uncertainty curbs the appetite of Antioquians for having a car,” said the Economic Director.

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And although in the Metropolitan Area of ​​the Valle de Aburrá (AMVA) they warned about the increase in the vehicle fleet (there are some 1,760,000 vehicles in the Aburrá) assuring that on average 1,000 vehicles are being registered daily, Fenalco believes that the figure is wrong.

“Not even adding Antioquia would give us that figure. According to the Andi-Fenalco Bulletin, 176,107 vehicles were sold in the department in 2021, adding vehicles, trucks, taxis and motorcycles, which gives a daily average in Antioquia of 565 license plates between cars and motorcyclesBustamante added.

(Also read: They recovered a stolen piece from the Otraparte House Museum)

The used ones also move

On the other hand, Andemos also revealed that the used vehicle market grew 34.5% during the first month of this year with 60,461 transfers in January nationwide.

Of the total list, the Valle de Aburrá appears in second place with 9,948 transferswhich is equivalent to a 16.5% stake.

“The increase in the used vehicle market demonstrates the need for families to have a decent and safe mobility alternative,” highlighted Oliverio García, president of Andemos, who added that the average number of transfers is 12-year-old vehicles. .

The cities where the most vehicle transfers were carried out in January, according to the entity, were: Bogotá (19,837 procedures), Cali (5,593), Envigado (3,958) and Medellín (3,352).

Is mobility going to collapse?

The mayor of Medellín, Daniel Quintero, stated that the city could finish with a pick and plate every other day if the road chaos continues.

“The peak and plate is one of the measures, easy because many people, given the resignation of the car, what they do is buy another or buy a motorcycle (…) That is a big deal for the dealers and the big deal is the introduction of the bill and plate”, said Quintero.

However, Fenalco insists that “previous experiences have shown the ineffectiveness of this measure. Campaigns must be created so that citizens are more aware of mobility and that companies have staggered schedules”.

(Keep reading: Will there be a second runway at the José María Córdova airport?)

“The use of the bicycle is an option that gains more strength every dayeven in a survey carried out by Fenalco Antioquia at the beginning of the year, businesses in Medellín and Valle de Aburrá dedicated to the bicycle business registered increases of more than 80% in their sales, compared to those registered before the pandemic,” Bustamante said. .

From the entity they also proposed that options be sought to extend public transport operating hours 24 hours, align with the traffic information offered by applications such as Waze and educate citizens about the implementation and use of vehicles that run on Natural Gas.

DAVID ALEJANDRO MARKET
Correspondent of THE TIME
Medellin
@AlejoMercado10

Antioquia: Increased foot of force in areas with the highest incidence of crime - Medellín - Colombia

The Ministry of Defense announced this Tuesday that there will be an increase in force in areas of Antioquia with the highest incidence of crime, to attack crime and reduce homicide rates in the department.

During a meeting in Bogotá with the governor of Antioquia, Aníbal Gaviria Correa, the president put on the table the issues of concern regarding security in the department and the actions that must be implemented to attack crime. Among them, it was agreed to strengthen capabilities in technology and mobility for the public force and a greater presence in the territory.

(You may be interested: Miners and peasants from Buriticá (Antioquia) went out to protest)

“Support was defined with an increase in foot force focused on regions of the department that are having a higher incidence of the presence of criminal groups,” said the governor.

For his part, Diego Molano, Minister of Defense, announced that “we have agreed to concentrate the efforts that Antioquia has in this plan with our Army and Police in the Northeast area.”

Molano indicated that the construction of the Pedro Justo Berrío battalion, in western Antioquia, is already in the budget of his portfolio and construction will begin during the first half of the year.

(Also read: Video: Family in Medellín had to leave their house escorted by the Police)

“The commitment of the national government and the Ministry of Defense to invest in the Pedro Justo Berrío battalion, in western Antioquia, was confirmed. A strategically located battalion and of which we hope to start works this first semester”, said, for his part, the governor.

On February 18, both the governor and the minister will be in the Southwest of the department to consolidate the “Safer Farm” strategy, which began in this area of ​​the department, but would become a model.

MEDELLIN

Increased consumption of high protection masks in the sixth wave

High protection masks (FFP2 and FFP3) as well as paracetamol have increased their sales in pharmacies during the sixth wave of covid, according to a report from the Cofares Trends Observatory

A woman walks in front of a graffiti in Barcelona protected by a mask due to the coronavirus epidemic. EFE/Enric Fontcuberta

Continuous adaptation. These are the two words with which the Cofares report summarizes the two years of the pandemic, a period in which health products to protect against the virus have been changing depending on the successive Covid waves and health recommendations.

Thus, during the months between November 2021 and January 2022 (until the 19th), there has been a notable increase in the demand for high protection masks, and an increase in the demand for paracetamol in Spanish pharmacies, coinciding with the sixth wave of covid.

Specifically, according to data from Cofares, the leading cooperative in pharmaceutical distribution in Spain, the demand for masks FFP2 and FFP3 increased by +642%, while, in tune with the winter season and the confluence of colds and viruses, paracetamol grew by +60% compared to the same period.

“The high rate of spread of the omicron variant -sixth wave- and the return of the mandatory nature of the mask outdoors in December are some of the factors that have been able to favor this significant upturn, together with the fact that the population is aware of the high transmission of omicron”, they point out from the organization’s Data area.

FFP2 and FFP3 have a effectiveness high filter -92%, in the first case, and 98%, in the second, although the specifications of each manufacturer must be observed-, protecting against environmental particles and aerosols and preventing us from inhaling harmful particles, including those that cause the spread of the coronavirus.

If the data is compared month by month with respect to the previous year, it can be seen that, in November 2021, the increase was +206%, going from +931% in December to +959% in January (ten days before the end of the month).

By autonomous communities, notable increases in demand higher protection masks, between November and January, well above the average in Navarra (+1,104%), Catalonia (+1,003%), the Canary Islands (+840%), La Rioja (+796%), Aragón (+746%) or the Community of Madrid (+674%).

In relation to the paracetamol demand in the analyzed period, Ceuta (+274%), Navarra (+114%), La Rioja (+91%), Andalucía (+84%), Aragón (+81%) and Murcia (+70%) are the communities self-employed that have presented the greatest increase, adds this report of Cofares.