EspañolEcuador President Rafael Correa announced this Monday, April 25 that it is time to place some responsibility on those who did a poor job constructing buildings in areas affected by the massive earthquake that hit the country earlier this month.
Through his Twitter account, the president warned that he will release the names of the companies that tried to “save a few pennies building death traps.”
He said the names of those from the local authorities (mayors) that allowed the construction of “poor quality” infrastructure will also be released.
…y reactivación, pero también, de RESPONSABILIDADES.
Cientos de vidas se han perdido por construcciones de pésima calidad. Ni siquiera…— Rafael Correa (@MashiRafael) April 25, 2016
… And recovery, but also responsibilities.
Hundreds of lives have been lost by shoddy construction. Not even…
…quiénes por ahorrar unos centavos construyeron trampas mortales, así como de las autoridades que lo permitieron.
NO podemos dejar que…— Rafael Correa (@MashiRafael) April 25, 2016
…those who save a few pennies built death traps, as well as the authorities that allow it.
We can not let …
According to a preliminary report from the Ministry of Planning and Development issued on Saturday April 23, there were 6,622 homes destroyed by the earthquake.
The document also says there are 13 health-related buildings and 281 educational institutions that were also effected.
Correa had a meeting this past Monday with the National Emergency Operations Committee (COE) to assess the situation in cities most badly effected.
According to local media, international funds offered US $630 million for the reconstruction of Manabi and Esmeraldas, the most badly hit regions.
According to the latest official figures, the numbers so far are as follows: 655 casualties, 17,638 wounded, 48 missing and 29,077 homeless.
These numbers make it the third-deadliest earthquake in Latin America, after the one that hit Haiti in January 2010 — which caused between 200,000 and 250,000 casualties — and the two that struck in El Salvador between January and February 2001, causing more than 1,100 casualties.
Private banking will make debts more flexible for those affected
The Association of Private Banks of Ecuador reported that they plan to restructure the debts of those customers who were affected by the earthquake, located in the areas of Manabi and southern Esmeraldas.
The organization reported that they decided to defer the collection of fees for the months of April, May and June, as well as housing loans, consumer microcredit and credit cards of people registered in these regions. They added that in the next two months, they will also provide solutions to restructuring overdue debts.
Source: El Comercio.