A tragedy fuelled by poverty

There are places that Colombia has bypassed and abandoned that only become known when tragedy strikes. Few people knew of the existence of Tasajera, in Pueblo Viejo, Magdalena, until 6 July 2020. Tasajera is a small village where people live in extreme poverty and it was here that a lorry carrying petrol ran off the main road and overturned.

When the people from the village saw the accident, they seized the opportunity to try to salvage fuel from the lorry with a view to selling it and making some money to feed their families. The cause of what happened next may never be known but the lorry exploded and the fireball cost the lives of 45 people and injured many others.

Mauricio (pictured below) was one young man who was caught in the blast. He still has much to contend with to recover physically and mentally from the injuries he sustained all over his body. There are others in his village, too, who will be marked for life by this tragedy. 

IMiC has been able to support some families in this village in association with Adonai Church. There are few sources of income in the locality and employment has slumped due to the pandemic. There is a lack of drinking water in the village and the electricity supply is constantly failing. The children lack education because so many families live in deep poverty. It is IMiC’s desire to bring some support to these families and develop projects that can help them in creating their own sources of income.

Posted on the 13th April 2021 at 8:57pm.

Tags: Tasajera