Torrential downpours caused “Rio Grande de Matagalpa” river to grow 9 metres and overflow the town damaging infrastructure and ruining crops throughout the area. That forced Pres. Ortega to declare a state of disaster.
President Daniel Ortega declared a state of disaster after days of incessant rains in Nicaragua left at least nine people dead and thousands homeless in the Nicaraguan department of Matagalpa.
“We are declaring a state of disaster and not a state of emergency,” he said, adding “a state of emergency limits the rights of the citizens and here we are not limiting any right to any citizen.”
The torrential downpours caused the “Rio Grande de Matagalpa” river to grow some nine metres and overflow into the town damaging infrastructure and ruining crops throughout the area.
The strong currents have caused vehicles to overturn on the roads and dragged makeshift homes, cars and household appliances into the river.
The situation has still caught many residents off guard, and rescue teams have been working constantly in order to help the local inhabitants.
“Nobody was prepared, some of us were coming back from work and suddenly we realised the river had overflowed and it began creating havoc,” a local resident told Nicaraguan television.
Rio Grande de Matagalpa which borders the city by the same name, has some of the strongest currents in the area.
Ortega meanwhile met in Managua with a Venezuelan delegation in Nicaragua to help assess the damages in Matapalga and other districts of the country affected by the floods which destroyed several neighbourhoods and toppled bridges.
The Nicaraguan president asked his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez for help in dealing with the situation.
Chavez said a team had been sent to Nicaragua to help his delegation assess the overall damages.
Heavy rains meanwhile continued to fall throughout the country, including the capital.
The city’s mayor Dionisio Marenci said that if it continued to rain, floods could force the closing down of the Sandino international airport.
The recent damages caused by the constant rains throughout the region have affected thousands of Nicaraguans who were still trying to recuperate from the damage caused by Hurricane Felix last month.
