Argentina, Colombia and Mexico boost channel cleaning to curb flooding

Municipalities in Argentina are advancing water‑management projects to reduce flood risk. In Chacabuco, officials report that more than 10,000 hectares of farmland will benefit from the ongoing dredging and reinforcement of a main drainage channel, with four kilometres already cleared. The provincial hydraulic directorate in Buenos Aires Province has finished three kilometres of cleaning in Saladillo, removing vegetation and sediment to improve runoff capacity.

In Colombia, Veolia is intensifying its preventive maintenance of urban drainage, clearing approximately 50 kilometres of canals in Montería, including neighbourhoods such as Furatena II and Villa Melisa, and urging residents not to dump waste into the channels. In Hermosillo, Mexico, municipal firefighters and police have conducted an intensive clean‑up of about 40 channels, extracting up to 700 tonnes of debris in a single day to mitigate flood threats.

Separately, Argentine authorities in San Juan have issued alerts for heavy snow, strong winds and the Zonda wind, warning drivers of reduced road safety and advising caution on mountain routes. The national road agency also urged motorists to travel slowly, increase following distances and carry chains where required due to ice and black‑ice hazards.