At least 34 people have died as a consequence of a landslide in the municipality of Pueblo Rico, in Risaralda, in western Colombia.
The rescue work continues and the local authorities have already advanced that the number of fatalities It could increase in the last few hours, since the whereabouts of many of the people who were traveling on a bus that was buried by this landslide are unknown.
It is estimated that some 5,000 cubic meters of land they buried the bus, a private car and a motorcycle and it has also taken three houses that were located at the foot of the slope.
According to the Risaralda Police, among the people killed by the glide there is a child under the age of seven who died at the Pueblo Rico Hospital, and two adults.
The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) has indicated that this landslide would be the result of soil hypersaturation due to the La Niña phenomenon.
The governor of the department of Risaralda, Victor Manuel Tamayohas confirmed the data from the National Risk Management Unit that says that the affected area has been known for a long time due to the difficulties it presents in terms of erosion, according to what he told RCN.
Tamayo has indicated that it is not possible at the moment certify the identity of the victims, waiting for a team from the Prosecutor’s Office and other public bodies to arrive at the scene to determine who the deceased are.
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, has transferred his condolences and solidarity with the victims and has promised that the Government will accompany them throughout this process. In turn, he has confirmed that among the deceased there would be at least three minors.