Bolivia: 3 Dead, 6 Missing Following Landslides, Floods

Intense rains have fallen across much of Bolivia over the past nine days, leaving at least three people dead, including a minor. Six others have been reported as missing, according to Reuters, and at least 20 municipalities have been left in a state of disaster.

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"We have three people registered as dead in the country, but five missing persons are. We are still being searched for them under the mud in the municipality of Tiquipaya," Bolivian Defense Minister Javier Zavaleta said. He also stressed that the emergency alert would be maintained for more than 14 municipalities, especially in the departments of Beni and Tarija, where heavy rainfall is forecast over the next three weeks.

Zavaleta reiterated that civil defense officials continue to carry out rescue work in the affected areas, despite the difficulties due to the accumulation of mud. He urged the Bolivians who reside in vulnerable regions, near river beds and landslides, to temporarily evacuate their homes for their safety.

Other municipalities that have declared a state of emergency are Cochabamba and Beni, as well as the capital city of La Paz. Bolivia's federal government has allocated funds to assist in recovery efforts.

Speaking to reporters about the floods, Bolivian President Evo Morales said “our solidarity is with the families affected" and announced that his government "will continue with brigades of rescue, relief, mitigation, and reconstruction of damages."

The Development Bank of Latin America, for its part, has offered to grant loans to address the situation quickly, according to RT.

Several officials including Beni governor, Alex Ferrier, have recalled the record-breaking rainfall and floods, which left over 60 people dead and over 60,000 people displaced across the country.

Rains and flooding over the last few days aren’t limited to Bolivia.

In Argentina at least 10,000 people have been forced to evacuate their homes, and an additional 60,000 have been affected so far along the country’s northern border with Bolivia, the Argentine Red Cross reports.

Several people were rescued from the fast running Pilcomayo River, which runs through the northern city of Salta, due to days of excessive rains, earlier this week.