Heavy rain has caused flooding in several parts of Bolivia over the last few days, in particular in the departments of Cochabamba and La Paz.
Cochabamba Department
Civil Defence reported flooding in the municipalities of Cercado, Colcapirhua, Villa Tunari and Tiquipaya in Cochabamba Department from 17 January 2021. Around 2,700 families are thought to be affected.
Flooding came after heavy rain caused rivers to overflow, including the Taquiña River. Damage was reported to homes, infrastructure and crops. Some families have evacuated their homes, mostly in Villa Tunari. One person died in floods in Cercado.
La Paz Department
Meanwhile heavy rain also caused the Mapiri and Tipuani rivers to break their banks on 18 January, flooding the town of Guanay in Larecaja province in northern La Paz Department.
Videos shared on Social Media by the city’s mayor showed wide areas of the city completely inundated.
Flood Alerts for Tarija, Cochabamba, Beni and La Paz
On 17 January Bolivia’s National Meteorology and Hydrology Service (Senamhi) issued a red alert for overflowing rivers and floods in the departments of Tarija, Cochabamba, Beni and La Paz.
Vice Minister of Civil Defense, Juan Carlos Calvimontes, said that so far this year approximately 13,000 families have been affected by severe weather incidents, with fatalities reported in Cochabamba and Sucre, where a short period of torrential rain and hail during the afternoon of 04 January 2021 caused severe flash flooding.
Social Media
#BrújulaDigitalInforma| Inundaciones en la localidad de Rumy Mayu, de la ciudad de Cochabamba, afectó a viviendas aledañas. Los vecinos intentan proteger sus pertenencias ante la intensa lluvia registrada en la jornada de hoy.
vía: Opinión pic.twitter.com/m0c8DkVFLt— Brújula Digital (@BrujulaNoticias) January 17, 2021
Decenas de gallinas mueren tras inundaciones de una granja en el sector de Sirpita, donde el río Tolavi se desbordó.
Las lluvias en Cochabamba afectan a varias zonas; los ríos y canales se desbordaron.https://t.co/kRQMGc4h1W
📸 TDT pic.twitter.com/YjsFyig0P0— Opinión Bolivia (@Opinion_Bolivia) January 17, 2021