Heavy rains hinder rescue effort after Colombian landslide kills 20

by AFP Staff Writers Bogot (AFP) July 19, 2023 AFP

Heavy rains on Wednesday complicated the search for nine people still missing after a landslide that killed at least 20 in central Colombia, authorities said.

More than 400 military troops, firefighters and other government rescue workers searched for survivors under intense downpours, two days after Monday's disaster in the Cundinamarca department.

"We have at this time a toll of 20 fatalities" including five minors, fire department chief Alvaro Farfan told reporters Wednesday.

Several homes were destroyed and a major trade artery blocked after torrential rains hit the Quetame municipality late Monday.

Fifteen bodies, four of them children, had been recovered from the mud and rubble on Tuesday before the search was temporarily called off due to bad weather.

The other five victims were discovered Wednesday.

The operation had previously been suspended due to rainfall that Farfan said "poses a risk for the personnel."

He did not rule out the possibility of more landslides due to the ongoing storms.

Authorities were monitoring the area "with technological equipment, to be able to identify these risks and, in case it becomes necessary, to evacuate our first responder groups," Farfan said.

The landslide washed away a vehicle bridge connecting Bogota to Villavicencio in the east -- one of the country's main freight routes that officials said would remain off-limits until at least the end of next week.

Quetame mayor Camilo Parrado has stated that the landslide dumped mud about two meters (yards) high in some places, making the search and rescue effort, aided by soldiers, a "very complex" one.

President Gustavo Petro said on Twitter that the event, the latest in a series in the region, highlighted the need for bolstering anti-flooding mechanisms.

He also announced there would be additional flights between Bogota and Villavicencio to make up for the backup of delivery trucks.

The rainy season in Colombia started in June and usually lasts until November.

Last year, seasonal flooding in the country left some 300 dead overall, including 34 people who died when an avalanche swallowed up a bus and other vehicles.