One of the most important and biodiverse massifs in the country, key to water access for almost 50 municipalities, has been on fire for more than 24 hours. The affected areas are located between Tona and Berlin, Santander, and already total more than 400 hectares in an area of 142 thousand hectares in total.
Burned frailejones from the Páramo. Photo: Nicolás Mantilla. Taken from El Tiempo.
The fire also puts at risk farmers who live in surrounding areas, for example, those located in the Ucatá village, in Tona.
This occurs amid record high temperatures in the country. According to the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (Ideam), there is a record temperature recorded in the country after a statement from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) that declared last year as the most critical.
Some of the areas of the country with the highest temperatures are San Andrés, with 32°C compared to 31 degrees before; Santa Marta with 36.9°c compared to 36.6 degrees and Jerusalem, which reached 40.4°c compared to 40 degrees before. Here the complete infographic.
Ideam warns that there is also an estimate of dry weather for the Caribbean, Andean, Orinoco, northern Amazonia, and southeastern Pacific regions. But moderate intensity rains are expected in the southwest of Chocó, the coasts of Valle del Cauca and Cauca and the south of Amazonas.
The Minister of the Environment has already spoken. Muhammad said that there are several emergencies due to the El Niño phenomenon. There are 883 municipalities threatened, 582 on red alert; 47 municipalities at risk of landslides, 13 on red alert; water shortage in Albania, which affects Wayuu communities and low levels in the Magdalena and Cauca river basins.
According to the Ministry of Environment, the government allocated a budget of 710 billion to respond to forest fire emergencies in the country with more than 43 thousand gallons of water and nearly 60 coordinated actions.
Santander and the country are on fire. More than 70 percent of the country is on red alert for forest fires. Over the weekend there were fires in vegetal areas of Floridablanca and Piedecuesta (Santander). And yesterday six more fires were recorded in that department. In Bogotá, after two days, the flames in the Eastern Hills do not stop.