LA PAZ, February 6, 2025 – Since November of last year, heavy rains in Bolivia have claimed 23 lives and displaced over 109,000 families across eight of the country’s nine departments, according to a local official who spoke on Wednesday.
In the past week alone, the death toll has increased from 19 to 23 due to flooding in the departments of Chuquisaca (south), La Paz (west), Tarija (south), Cochabamba (central), Santa Cruz (east), and Potosí (southwest), as reported by Juan Carlos Calvimontes, the Deputy Minister of Civil Defense, during a press conference. He also noted that two individuals remain unaccounted for.
Furthermore, the number of families either forced from their homes or otherwise affected by the floods has surged from 84,029 to 109,156 within just one week, underscoring the magnitude of this natural disaster.
Since November, 76 municipalities and 1,314 communities have been impacted, with 652 houses sustaining damage—including 332 that were completely destroyed, according to the Deputy Minister.
Last month, the department of La Paz declared a state of emergency in response to severe flooding affecting multiple municipalities.
According to the National Meteorological and Hydrological Service, officials have warned that heavy rains are expected to persist.
