Too wet, too dry: Bolivia declares emergency as El Nino hits from both sides

LA PAZ, Nov 1 — In response to the El Nino weather phenomenon causing havoc worldwide, Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz declared a state of emergency on Saturday, aiming to allocate resources to address the impacts of this dual-impact event. The decree also mandates the deployment of additional rescue teams to areas severely affected, as Bolivia faces a conundrum of both flooding and drought due to El Nino, according to Paz's address to the nation.

"This will be a phenomenon that will have very severe impacts in terms of drought and floods, and we need the cooperation of all institutions," Paz emphasized. The drought is impacting 78,000 families across six of the country's nine departments, causing the loss of more than 75,000 cattle, a government report revealed this week.

El Nino, characterized by warming surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, triggers worldwide changes in winds, pressure, and rainfall patterns. The United Nations issued a warning this week, predicting an "unprecedented" strength of the current El Nino that could wreak havoc across Latin America, eastern and southern Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.

Neighboring Peru has experienced increased temperatures and wildfires, resulting in at least 12 deaths. Chile has witnessed its rainiest October ever in the capital, Santiago.