Pereira and Santa Rosa de Cabal are on Red Alert
Between January 5 and 10, 2024, there was a 390% increase in the number of municipalities on fire alert, going from 192 to 747, of which, about 500 are on red alert, mainly in the region. Andean.
Risaralda
Pereira and Santa Rosa de Cabal are on red alert, Marsella and Mistrató in orange, finally Apía, Balboa, Belén De Umbría, Dosquebradas, La Celia, La Virginia, Quinchía and Santuario in yellow.
The Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Susana Muhamad, stated:“We are sending an alert to the country due to the risk of forest fires in the municipalities. The municipalities affected by these emergencies are mainly in high mountain areas, temperatures have increased considerably and we are on alert in rural areas. “We strengthen coordination with the authorities to confront the phenomenon and maintain the work to contain deforestation.”
According to IDEAM monitoring, high temperatures and the risk of fires in several regions of the country could affect the air quality of the country’s main cities, as well as frost in the savanna of Bogotá and municipalities of Boyacá.
For her part, the director of IDEAM Ghisliane Echeverry pointed out: “We are predicting that high temperatures will occur in January and February and the season with less rain is expected.”
“We are working in prioritized municipalities with drought risk, to prioritize water supply. The flow thresholds have not dropped to levels that allow us to say that there is a risk of shortages. “We call on mayors and governors to prepare their monitoring stations and reinforce their contingency plans to be prepared for possible emergencies.” concluded the Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development.
Given
During 2024, fire departments have attended 62 fires in the country
Recommendations:
For her part, the Minister of the Environment made the following recommendations:
Activate emergency monitoring protocol in municipalities and departments. Constant surveillance of communities, rangers and firefighters to contain attempts and avoid major emergencies. Do not burn or bonfire in rural areas. Avoid activities that generate sparks in the plant cover and could cause flames. Have the emergency numbers on hand and activate the relief agencies in case of attempts.