Mar
Advocacy, News from Communities
Families from the lower Lempa region demand mitigation works
Inhabitants of the lower Lempa region organized a demonstration today asking for mitigation works that need to take place before the start of the rainy season. The region has managed to remain organized in the absence of the figure of governors. Nevertheless they make the following plea to the government to prevent the kind of disasters they have endured in the past:
The families that live in the communities of the lower Lempa once again make it public before the arrival of winter that we face the serious risk of floods that endanger our lives, homes, crops and others.
We demand from the central government, the authorities of the Hydroelectric Company (CEL); Ministry of Public Works (MOP); Ministry of the Interior, that they do not wait for the river to put our lives at risk to carry out maintenance work on the Lempa River banks and that they provide the maintenance that they require as soon as possible.
Furthermore, we ask the construction of more than four and a half kilometers of levees in the area of Jiquilisco, Usulután.
It is well known that the families of Bajo Lempa have suffered serious damage due to the floodings when the levees collapse due to the discharges from the dam, since they increase the flow of the Lempa River, aggravating the situation in the area.
Bajo Lempa has historically been affected by the storms registered in 1998 by Hurricane Mitch; in 2005, by Hurricane Stan; in 2009, by the storm Ida; in 2010, by Agatha and in 2011 by the storm 12-E; to name a few. In the last event recorded in 2022, the storm Julia forced dozens of families to remain in shelters for 7 days.
#EsNoticia | Con la esperanza de que el Gobierno Central les escuche, familias del Bajo Lempa llegaron hasta el Centro de Gobierno a exigir obras de mitigación en bordas del Río Lempa ante llegada del invierno, son alrededor de 12 mil familias en riesgo. 🚨 pic.twitter.com/kPuKf2AXS4
— Oscar Machon (@OscarMachon) March 10, 2023
The organized families that inhabit the region demand:
1- That the government incorporate the maintenance of the levees in the lower Lempa area into the National Budget.
2- That CEL, MOP, the Central government and the Mayor’s Office of Tecoluca act in advance and do not wait for the arrival of rainy season.
3- Cleaning and maintenance of the drains in the area.
4- Stop to the extraction of sand from the Lempa River.
