Venezuelan President Maduro briefing about the emergency respond on heavy rains in the Andean region of Venezuela, in Caracas, June 26, 2025. Photo: Presidential Press.
The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, has presented a review on the effects of the recent rains, associated with Tropical Wave Number Nine, that have primarily affected the western part of the country, which has so far resulted in a 300% increase in rainfall in the Andes region.
“Our revolutionary government has honed and perfected its capacity to respond to any situation in the country,” the head of state explained at the Andes 2025 Task Force Deployment review this Thursday, June 26. “We have honed and perfected our ability to resolve even what seems to be impossible. Whatever damage there is will be repaired.”
The president highlighted the fact that the authorities have been by the side of the people in the streets since the beginning of the emergency. “As never before in our lives, in the past we have lived through, we have never seen such immediate activation of plans, machinery, and infrastructure, the perfect fusion of grassroots community, police, and military action to protect the poor, the entire Venezuelan population, all those who need it most.”
#ENVIVO | Presidente de #Venezuela #NicolásMaduro: nuestro Gobierno revolucionario ha pulido y perfeccionado la capacidad de acción frente a cualquier situación en el país. https://t.co/ROUUUfk9OP pic.twitter.com/mbdwixB5sv
— teleSUR TV (@teleSURtv) June 26, 2025
The head of state instructed regional authorities to secure high-risk areas and requested support from municipalities, community councils, and communes to find structural solutions for housing.
To ensure connectivity in the Andes, a temporary road was opened on Trunk Road Seven, supervised by Infrastructure Minister Jorge Márquez to ensure the passage of heavy machinery through the Andean Páramo area.
President Maduro noted that in the state of Mérida alone, 25 bridges and 370 homes have been affected. Additionally, approximately 8,456 families have so far been isolated, so recovery teams have been brought in to begin reconstruction efforts.
In his briefing, the Venezuelan president announced that he had ordered an investigation into the factors currently “disturbed by the climate emergency: rivers, streams, ravines, and soil conditions.”
This will allow the responding authorities to delve deeper into the “climate change map, zone by zone, territory by territory, in order to be two steps ahead of the climate emergency,” the president explained.
He also stated that Venezuela will continue to grow economically despite the contingency, and clarified that nothing is going to be allowed to stop Venezuelans from building a prosperous and harmonious country.
“Provisions have been made so that families don’t lack food,” he said. ‘I’ve told this to Mérida, Trujillo, Barinas, and Apure authorities. When roads are affected, people need their water and food.”
President Maduro Activates Andes 2025 Task Force Amid Heavy Rains in Venezuela
Colombia landslide
Meanwhile, in neighboring Colombia, the death toll from a Tuesday landslide in the municipality of Bello, near Medellín, has climbed to 14, authorities reported on Thursday. Rescue teams continue to search for missing people.
Rescuers are digging through tons of earth on a mountainside, seeking survivors or victims’ bodies. The landslide was triggered by heavy rains that caused a nearby stream to overflow.
Bello Mayor Lorena González told Caracol Televisión that the tragedy has so far claimed 14 lives, with 11 people still missing. “The ground remains unstable; there’s significant risk for rescuers,” she said. The mudslides have also buried several houses.
According to the latest municipal reports, at least 23 people have been rescued alive, and approximately 1,000 residents have been evacuated from their homes and relocated to temporary shelters due to alerts about potential further landslides.
(Telesur) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/AU
