Global Courant
While rescuers supported by soldiers from the Guatemalan Army continue the search for 13 people missing after the overflowing of the Naranjo River, in the Dios es faithful settlement, located below the El Naranjo bridge, in zone 7 of the capital, the National Institute of Sciences Forensics (Inacif) revealed the causes of death of four victims of that tragedy.
In total, as of this Tuesday, the Conred authorities report the discovery of six bodies of people who died during the river overflowing.
The Inacif report details that four bodies from the El Naranjo tragedy were admitted to the morgue of that institution in zone 3 of the capital, and details the results of the autopsies performed.
The report states that they are two children and two adult women, whose identities have not yet been established.
According to Inacif, they are a 2-year-old boy, a 3-year-old girl and a 40-year-old woman, who died due to asphyxiation due to submersion, that is, drowning.
Meanwhile, another woman, approximately 50 years old, died from head trauma, which suggests that she hit her head while being dragged by the current.
“From the early hours of today (Tuesday), they reactivated the search, location and rescue operations for missing people, as a result of the emergency due to the overflowing of the El Naranjo River,” the spokesperson for the Coordinator for the Disaster Reduction (Conred), Rodolfo García.
The mishap occurred in the early hours of Monday when a strong flood of the Naranjo River destroyed the homes in the Dios es faithful settlement, located below a vehicular bridge.
The current caused by the rains carried away stones, trees, earth and debris and destroyed the precarious houses in the area, mostly built with sheets and wood.
About 13 people are still missing, out of a total of 19 reported victims, among them a dozen children, according to Conred.
Three institutions also support the operations with their special canine units.
Likewise, the Conred authorities, in charge of civil protection, will continue with the damage assessment and needs analysis, as well as the risk conditions in the nearby area.
Prior to this tragedy, the current rainy season in Guatemala, which begins in May and ends in November, had left 29 dead, 2.1 million affected, 10,303 evacuated and severe damage to infrastructure.
With information from AFP
