00:00Colombia woke up this Saturday with 13 active forest fires and another 10 under control.
00:05According to the most recent UNGRD report, as of 8 a.m. this Saturday
00:12August 22. Active emergencies are concentrated in Tolima, Cundinamarca and Norte de Santander.
00:18although the department of Tolima accounts for the majority of the fires that remain
00:22Under monitoring. In Tolima, fires are reported in Suárez, Carmen de Apicalá, San Luis, and Ortega.
00:28Venadillo, Alvarado, Armero, Chaparral, Líbano, Coelho, and Guamo. There is an emergency in Cundinamarca.
00:35active in Lenguasaque, while in Norte de Santander another is reported in Durania.
00:40The situation occurs amidst the second driest season and high-pressure conditions
00:45Temperatures and reduced rainfall have favored the emergence and spread of
00:50Forest fires are burning in various regions of the country. The UNGRD reported that fires are continuing in Tolima.
00:56air operations with two AT-802 aircraft and two UH-60 helicopters, while for the
01:03For emergencies in Carmen de Apicalá and Suárez, a Huey helicopter from the Air Force was deployed.
01:08The Colombian Air Force and another UH-60 from the Army are also participating in the relief efforts.
01:1324 units from the BRIAT, 30 from the Río Sucio Forest Brigade and 7 units from Ponalzara,
01:20in addition to various fire departments. According to the Tolima Regional Autonomous Corporation,
01:24Cortolima, in that department, fires have consumed 22,319 hectares of forest cover
01:31vegetation in 28 municipalities. 68% of these areas correspond to forests and semi-natural areas.
01:39Clearly, the damage is quite considerable. The damage to the soil,
01:44There are soils that, after a fire of this magnitude, of this category,
01:49"They never fully recover," warned Olga Lucía Alfonso, director of Cortolima.
01:55According to the analysis by the Environmental Authority, the fire has consumed extensive areas
02:00of grassland, gallery and riparian forest, clean pastures, shrubland and cereals such as corn crops
02:06and rice. This emergency could be associated with the lack of rain that is already beginning to be felt.
02:11in that region. According to Cortolima, between August 1 and 20, Tolima registered only 16.7
02:19millimeters of rain, when the normal amount for this period is 42.9 millimeters. That is to say,
02:24The agency explained that rainfall reached only 39% of what was expected and covered 96% of the territory.
02:31Rainfall was below normal levels. The decrease, according to Cortolima,
02:36This is also evident in water sources. Of the 13 streams monitored by the Authority
02:41Environmentally, nine reported a decrease in their levels and ten in their flow rates, with a reduction
02:46average of 23.7% compared to the previous period.
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