Eleven people and a pet who were isolated by the sudden rise of the Guayuriba River in Araguaney, formerly known as Cocuy Bajo, one of the Department of Meta hamlets, were rescued in a helicopter of the Colombian Air Force, sent by the National Center for Personnel Recovery CNRP, in the search and Rescue Mission Angel.
At three o'clock in the afternoon, the crews of the helicopter Black Hawk UH-60 of the Air Combat Command no.2 CACOM2, began the complex rescue work of citizens who were at risk in rural areas of Villavicencio, due to the flooding caused by the overflow of the Guayuriba River to the Negrito River.
In four flights 15 meters height, by means of a crane rescue, it was possible to make the successful extraction of a baby, two children, 4 years old, three seniors, five adults and a dog; in the same way, during the operation, nine members of the Civil Defense and the Red Cross, boarded the aircraft to be transported to the areas, with the goal of conducting damage assessment and the determine needs for evacuation of the community.
The rescue operation ended at eight p.m. when the 11 citizens were given to the staff of the Relief Agencies and the Mayor of Villavicencio, Juan Felipe Harman, for relocation and medical support, as one of the older adults required a special assistance.
The aircraft returned to the CACOM2, and at 10 p.m. again they prepared for take-off, in this opportunity, to go to the critical point of the Rio Negrito. Four members of the National Police, with their rescue equipment and a Zodiac boat, went to the zone with the purpose of strengthening the Relief Agencies, because the situation of the community in vulnerability conditions required an inter-agency work to save the lives of our countrymen.
Recently, the Department of Meta was listed by IDEAM as an area on red alert for rains and cloudiness, under constant monitoring in several areas of the Orinoquia; roads, houses and plantations have been completely covered by water and mud, dragged by these rivers, which is why, the mayor decreed the public calamity in Villavicencio.
Source: press- Colombian Air Force
