2008年2月23日 星期六
最近全球氣候驟變，沒想到也造成波利維亞鬧水患，狀況似乎挺不好的，希望氣候能快點回復正常，以免波國受創更深。
A boy jumps from a boat after using it to cross a flooded street in northern Bolivia. The nation's president, Evo Morales, has declared his nation's floods a national disaster.
Juan Karita / the associated press
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Thursday, 21 February, 2002, 01:20 GMTJuan Karita / the associated press
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Fifty dead in shock Bolivian flood
By Andrew Enever in La Paz
La Paz was in sombre mood the morning after the terrible storm which in a matter of hours devastated the city, leaving over 50 dead.
The streets were unusually empty as people began counting the cost of the flood which ripped up streets, brought buildings crashing down and filled city centre subways with water, hail and mud.
La Paz´s main street, El Prado, was transformed into a fast-moving river, dragging people and vehicles along with it
The number of confirmed casualties has risen throughout the day as bodies are found under collapsed buildings, buried in cars and washed up on the banks of the river to the south of the city.
As well as the more than 50 confirmed deaths, there are over 100 people still not accounted for.
In addition, 150 people are receiving treatment in city hospitals, many for serious fractures after they were smashed into cars, trees and lamp-posts by the water.
Shock
The downpour of hail and rain, unlike any previously seen in Bolivia´s administrative capital, began at 1500 on Tuesday.
Within an hour, an immense amount of water running down from the poor neighbourhoods high up to the north, east and west of the city was funnelled into the centre of the valley.
La Paz´s main street, El Prado, was transformed into a fast-moving river, dragging people and vehicles along with it.
Passers-by had to climb trees to escape the raging torrents.
Five people were killed when a tunnel under the main street was filled with water and hail reaching depths of three metres.
Calle Mercado, a side street next to the tunnel, was also devastated during 10 minutes of terror, as people were washed down the street and buildings collapsed on top of those within.
Devastation
Estaban Ramos, owner of a small photocopying shop in the street saw his business destroyed in a matter of seconds as the fast-moving water rose above the level of ground-floor
doors. He, his wife and two young children fortunately escaped to the top floor of a neighbouring building, but others were not so lucky
Herman Marquez, owner of a restaurant on the same street, saw two women killed as they jumped from a first-floor window trying to escape a collapsing building only to be swept away by the deadly waters.
Another volunteer told me that work was going on to recover the bodies of two people who were trapped under a collapsed restaurant.
Another volunteer told me that work was going on to recover the bodies of two people who were trapped under a collapsed restaurant.
In another part of the city, water burst through a drain in the courtyard of a house, flooding the ground floor, parts of which collapsed.
A woman in the house was buried up to her chest in hail but was rescued.
As the water poured out of the front door it knocked over a 3m-high wall and flooded a car park burying over 25 vehicles.
As the water poured out of the front door it knocked over a 3m-high wall and flooded a car park burying over 25 vehicles.
Relief effort
Teams of volunteers joined the emergency services in the central area to help clear the mess of rocks and hail, while shop owners scrabbled around trying to recover the last undamaged items from their properties.
Wooden beams were in place to prop up the façade of buildings whose insides were nothing more than a huge pile of rubble.
City resources have been stretched to the limit as fire brigade, police and army try to attend to the many disaster areas.
President Jorge Quiroga has declared a state of emergency and the mayor of La Paz has committed all his staff to the emergency efforts in the streets.
Apart from the tragic deaths and injuries, the floods have left economic devastation for thousands of Bolivians whose shops, restaurants and street stalls were destroyed.
Official estimates state that damages exceed $60m.
Wilma Vargas Urquieta wept tears of despair as she told me how her small high street pharmacy was flooded.
"I have lost everything," she said.
In the Rodriguez fruit market, one seller was washed away to her death as she tried desperately to prevent the loss of her produce.
The official death toll continues to rise as in the centre more bodies are pulled from the rubble and to the south of the city villagers in Valencia and Rio Bajo carry out the grim task of pulling bodies from the river.
Twelve dead have been recovered in these two places with reports stating that other bodies were travelling too fast to be stopped.
Twenty-four hour emergency efforts are expected to continue for some time with Mayor Juan Del Granado stating that it will take 2,000 government workers 10 days before the city can return to order.
Granado also made new appeals for food and clothes for victims and volunteers to help with the clear-up.
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