Flooding along rivers in northern Colombia has affected over 50,000 people, mostly in the La Mojana Region in the departments of Bolivar, Sucre, Antioquia and Cordoba. Wide areas of crops have been damaged and thousands of livestock relocated.

Floods in Cordoba, Colombia September 2021. Civil Defence volunteers in boats help to evacuate some and deliver aid to those who decided to remain. Photo: Civil Defence Colombia

According to Colombia’s Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM), several rivers in the north have been above alert levels for some time, including the Cauca, San Jorge, Magdalena and Sinú. The situation along the Cauca was worsened by the collapse of a river embankment in San Jacinto del Cauca in Bolívar Department, according to local media reports.