El Niño spares no one: State prepares aid and evacuations in riverside areas

Paraguay is mobilizing an urgent, inter-institutional emergency response as the El Niño phenomenon intensifies, causing rivers to swell and threatening thousands of families in riverside communities. The Defensor del Pueblo, Rafael Ávila Macke, confirmed that the state is coordinating a contingency plan to address the imminent threat of flooding.

The department of Alto Paraguay is already experiencing severe impacts, with several communities isolated due to impassable roads following intense rainfall. The Air Force is deploying helicopters to deliver essential supplies and medical aid to these areas. The primary concern, however, lies with the densely populated riverside areas of Asunción and the Central department, where social vulnerability is starkly exposed during flood events.

Authorities are particularly worried about the situation in Asunción, where projections indicate extreme gravity if the Paraguay River's water level reaches 5.50 to 6 meters; it currently hovers around 4.30 meters and continues to rise. The challenge is compounded by the fact that hundreds of residents have constructed precarious homes directly on the river's floodplains. This irregular occupation means even slight rises in water levels can immediately inundate these areas.

Relocating these families presents a complex, decades-old problem. While the state has offered housing solutions elsewhere, many families refuse them or return to the riverbanks due to the convenience for their informal work and daily commutes. The Defensoría del Pueblo will monitor the evacuation operations to ensure human rights are protected and to channel any grievances, focusing on guaranteeing rights, education, and security in the shelters.

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The problem of relocation is extremely complex and has been repeating for decades. The State has offered housing solutions in other sectors, but many families end up rejecting them or returning to the riverbed because the central area is convenient for their informal jobs, being only minutes from their daily management locations.