Platform Collapse at Construction Site Alarms Sopocachi; Mayor Urges Trust from Residents

 A platform collapsed at a construction site between 20 de Octubre and Kantutani avenues in the Sopocachi area of La Paz. Mayor Iván Arias and the company responsible for the project reassured residents, stating that efforts will be made to stabilize the site.

The incident caused concern among neighbors who are uncertain about the safety of their homes, especially considering that the slide affected the road.

"We understand that it is a man-made event caused by human activity, triggered by the displacement of the retaining wall," explained Daniel Rueda, an engineer from the construction company.

The engineer pointed out that the saturation of the soil could be due to a water leak, the origin of which needs to be determined.

He assured that the construction has all the permits to build a structure of around 18 floors. He added that they have employed a modern excavation system, with no reported issues even during the rainy season.

Residents criticized Mayor Arias, claiming that they had previously warned that the land was unsuitable for construction, considering it used to be a lake.

The Mayor urged residents to have confidence, emphasizing that efforts are underway to ensure safety. He mentioned that there is currently no evacuation plan, although it is not ruled out.

In the morning, there was an issue as EPSAS couldn't close the water valve for the corresponding area, delaying the start of mitigation efforts.

The company representative stated that, as part of their contingency plan, an assessment of adjacent homes is being carried out.

"We have notified that there is currently no risk of homes facing any problems," reassured Engineer Rueda.

He explained that they will divert the water system through pipes and install wedges on the retaining wall to stabilize Kantutani Avenue.

Torrential rain floods neighborhoods and streets of Santa Cruz and leaves serious damage

Images of the storm have gone viral on social networks. The Santa Cruz Mayor's Office set up a hotline 800 12 5050 to report emergencies. 

After two hours of torrential rain, the streets and avenues of the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra turned into rivers. The intense rainfall collapsed the drainage channels causing risky situations for pedestrians, but also for vehicles, which were swept away and flooded.

The storm has left serious damage to public infrastructure and property in the city. The damage count has begun.  

An image of a person being swept away by the water current was disseminated in social networks, however no further information is known.

The Municipal Secretariat of Citizen Security and Supply of the Santa Cruz Mayor's Office set up a hotline 800 12 5050 to report emergencies.

Neighbors used social networks to report the damages in several neighborhoods of the capital city of Santa Cruz.

"It is dangerous to cross the bridge", said a pedestrian, who was walking in the middle of the flooded streets. It is known that public transportation stopped operating due to the risk posed by the force of the water.

In some images it was observed how some vehicles were swept away by the intense flow that formed in the avenues. Some vehicles fell into the canals. 

One of the images that has gone viral at this time is that of a driver who had to climb onto the roof of his car, which was almost submerged in water, in the vicinity of the Eagles School.

Meanwhile, in the northern area of the city, a crane ended up stuck in a drainage channel while trying to help different vehicles dragged by the water.

Police officers also reported that two puppies were rescued after they fell into the drainage channel and were swept away by the waters in the seventh ring.

"Due to the rains, 2 furry dogs fell into the drainage channel and were being swept away by the current. Upon noticing the fact, our police officers from the Integral Police Station No. 9 entered the channel and managed to rescue the 2 furry ones," read a publication of the law enforcement agency. 

Tomatirenda, the Guaraní community that disappeared in the floods

 According to the report, more than 500 families have been affected throughout the disaster zone, 38 of them have lost all their belongings and 81 are at risk.

Five days have passed since a flood caused havoc in the Guaraní territory of Itika Guasu, in the municipality of Entre Ríos in O'Connor province, and the full extent of the damage is not yet known, but preliminary information is not at all encouraging. The overflowing of the creek, disappeared the community of Tomatirenda, there is no trace, everything is mud and sticks.

According to the report provided by the Civil Defense, in the disaster area, Tomatirenda is the most affected, with 95% of losses. Therefore, 23 families reported material losses; there was a total loss of houses; in addition, they were left without a school, a Sentir Center, or a school garden.

The governor of Tarija himself, Oscar Montes, recognized that it will be difficult to rebuild the community of Tomatirenda, since it is more practical to analyze the possibility of moving it to another site in order to build it again.

As for the missing persons, it is estimated that nine of them belong to Tomatirenda, while one of them is from Moko Mokal.

According to the account of the inhabitants and the report handled by the authorities, the rains began in the Itika Guasu mountain range, overflowed on Sunday night, and initially affected the communities located in the headwaters, such as Agua Buena Yukupita and Morteritos, which suffered damage to their crops.

The creek then reached Tomatirenda, where it caused the most damage, followed its course through Filadelfia, Ñaurenda, Saladito de Ñaurenda, Moko Mokal, Itayuru, Timboy and Salado Grande. Losses ranged from agricultural crops, houses, household appliances, clothing, food, part of their harvest, as well as their livestock.

Families affected

According to the report provided on Wednesday, the flood left a total of 525 families affected. From Tomatirenda there are 40; from Filadelfia, 20; from Ñaurenda 130; from Saladito de Ñaurenda, 42; from Moko Mokal, 63; from Ytayuro, 34; from Timboy, 150; from Morterito, 46. However, there is still no record of Agua Buena Yukupita or Salado Grande.

As for the number of people affected or with material losses, there are a total of 38 families with total losses, while 81 families are at risk. In detail: 23 families in Tomatirenda have total losses, including their homes; in Filadelfia, two families have total losses, but seven are at risk.

In Ñaurenda there are two families with total loss, including their homes, and 20 homes and the health center are at risk; in Saladito de Ñaurenda there are four families with total loss, including their homes.

Moko Mokal has four families with total loss and 18 at risk, in addition to the productive center, the community house and the Sentir Center; Itayuro has one family that has lost everything, but six others are at risk.

Meanwhile, Timboy has eight families at risk, in addition to the risk of losing their educational unit, the health center, the community center, the productive development shed and their church.

There are missing students

According to the report handled by the Municipal Government of Entre Ríos, there are 10 people missing as a result of this natural disaster, three of them have already been found dead, but the search is still ongoing.

In this context, the head of the Departmental Directorate of Education, Pedro Ordoñez, who visited the area, has confirmed that, of the 10 missing persons, three of them are students, two belonging to the community of Tomatirenda and one to Ñaurenda.

For the time being, classes have been suspended due to the emergency situation in this Guaraní area.

Government announces that it will replace the houses

The director of the State Housing Agency (AEV) regional Tarija, Anibal Martínez, informed that the houses that have been affected by the overflowing of the Ñaurenda creek, in the municipality of Entre Ríos of the province O'Connor, will be completely rebuilt through the program "Housing for Emergencies".

The program "Vivienda Damaged Housing Housing Replaced", he mentioned, while indicating that there is a record of at least between "130 to 140 affected homes", a number that could increase and that will be confirmed through the information that will be collected in the following days.

Aid continues to arrive

The disaster situation that 10 communities of the Guarani territory of the O'Connor province are going through has touched the hearts of the inhabitants of the department of Tarija as well as the interior of the country, who showed their solidarity and sent food, clothing, toys and other goods for the affected families.

The mayor of Tarija, Johnny Torres, along with a delegation of municipal officials moved on Wednesday morning with a truck loaded with things to help the victims of the indigenous territory.

A similar situation occurred with the Minister of Defense, Edmundo Novillo, who in his visit to the community of Timboy, arrived with humanitarian aid, arguing that so far there are more than 13 tons of food and food assistance for the affected families, as an immediate response of the central government to the request for help from local authorities and residents of the localities.

Two dead, eight missing, 29 families lost everything

 Civil Defense indicates that these figures may increase. There is no electricity or water in the towns that were affected by the heavy rains and floods of the past hours.

The rains and floods registered in Entre Ríos, O'Connor province (Tarija), left a preliminary balance of two people dead, eight missing and 29 families who lost everything, according to data from the Vice-Ministry of Civil Defense released on Tuesday.

The Vice Minister Juan Carlos Calvimontes, affirmed that these numbers may increase, due to the fact that some localities are still not contacted, because they were left without electric energy and they do not have drinking water either.

"We have quantified 10 affected communities, eight people missing, two dead, children, four and 12 years old, and there are 29 families who have lost practically everything, 100 affected families, 23 damaged houses, six under the mud, two educational units, and 90 percent of the local roads are practically cut, there is no access by land," said the authority.

According to Calvimontes, this is the "disaster of the greatest magnitude that our country has suffered as a result of this season of rains and floods". Food, supplies and other goods are being sent to assist the victims.

The interview:

"A shelter has been installed in the city, but unfortunately there are no families who want to leave their communities, they are seeking refuge where relatives or neighbors. The President has instructed the Armed Forces and Civil Defense to mobilize, we have taken a ton and a half of food", added Calvimontes, referring that 50 million Bolivianos were destined to attend the emergencies. 

Search for missing persons

Firefighters of the National Police and Volunteer Groups, among them SAR del Sur, Ángeles en el Fuego and Brasschaat, resumed this Tuesday the search for people missing due to the overflowing of the Itayuro stream, in the municipality of Entre Ríos (Tarija).

Community members tell authorities what they have seen in the disaster area.

About 50 rescuers are participating in this task with the mission of finding the bodies that were swept away.

According to the deputy governor of O'Connor province, Gróver Torrejón, it is estimated that 16 people are missing (four have already been located). It is expected that with the beginning of the work, another 12 people will be found.

It is probable that this number is not real and may increase as more information emerges on the second day of the search by the police firefighters and the volunteer groups. 

The director of Risk Management of the Governor's Office, Reiner Figueroa, confirmed the beginning of the search for the missing persons in the midst of the persistent rain and the rescuers plan to advance to the town of Tomatirenda.

Meanwhile, in the city of Tarija, solidarity campaigns are being organized to collect food, water bottles and clothes in good condition for the affected families of Timboy and other neighboring communities.

"We cannot remain indifferent to this disaster that affected the Guarani people. That is why we launched a campaign and we expect the solidarity of the citizenship", said the director of the Departmental Service of Social Management (Sedeges), María Esther Valencia.

The Government of Tarija and other entities joined in this solidarity activity.