Ecuador recorded this Monday (31) a record volume of rainfall in the capital, Quito, in almost two decades. There were 75 liters of water per square meter, a value that exceeds by more than 30 times what the forecasts indicated. Local officials say the figure is the highest since 2003.
At least 22 people died and another 47 were injured, two of them in serious condition, in a landslide in the La Gasca neighborhood, according to the National Emergency Management Service on Tuesday (1st). Twenty individuals are still missing after the incident that destroyed three homes.
“We saw this huge black river that dragged everything, we had to climb the walls to escape,” resident Alba Cotacachi, who pulled her two daughters out of the house amid the landslide, told Reuters news agency. “We are now looking for the missing.”
During the early hours of Tuesday, the number of people affected exceeded 200. Several houses, a police building, an electric power substation and dozens of vehicles of security agents were damaged amid the rains and the rescue work.
The mayor of Quito, Santiago Guarderas, said that medical and psychological support teams had been sent to La Gasca and that rescue groups were looking for the missing. The municipal administration also organized collection points for hygiene items, clothes and food in several areas of the capital.
In another region of Quito, the volume of water exceeded the capacity of a catchment structure located on a slope, leading to the failure. The water reached a sports court on which volleyball players and fans were standing and advanced for about 1 kilometer.
Rescuer Cristian Rivera told the AFP news agency that many of the victims suffered from hypothermia due to the time they spent underwater and the mud reached up to their knees. Stones torn and dragged by the force of the water also caused injuries.
About 51 personnel, 12 vehicles, 26 ambulances, a team of drones and the canine unit of the Quito firefighters were mobilized to respond to emergency areas in the capital.
In a social network, Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso expressed support for the victims’ families and community and said that federal authorities work in collaboration with local teams in efforts to search, transfer the wounded to hospitals and provide psychological support. About 60 military personnel were also mobilized to support rescue efforts amidst the rubble.
Ecuador has been witnessing the consequences of the rainy season since October. At least 22 of the country’s 24 provinces were affected. Until Sunday (30), before the new victims were counted, the number of dead reached 18, and the number of injured, 24. More than 2,800 people were directly affected.
Source: Folha
