The United Nations Organization has expressed its support and closeness to the victims and their relatives after the explosions recorded this Friday in a military facility in Viacha, in the Bolivian department of La Paz, which have so far caused three deaths, thirteen missing, and 84 injured.
The United Nations office in Bolivia has also reiterated its willingness to collaborate with the country's institutions to respond to the needs of people in situations of special vulnerability as a direct consequence of the disaster.
"The United Nations System in Bolivia expresses its deep solidarity with the individuals and families affected by the explosions that occurred in the municipality of Viacha, in La Paz, and extends its heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased," the organization stated in a statement published this Saturday on its social media.
In the same text, the organization emphasized that it maintains its willingness to provide assistance in the emergency response tasks and conveyed its wishes for recovery for the injured.
"We reaffirm our readiness to support, in coordination with the authorities, in the timely response to the needs of those who are currently in a situation of greater vulnerability, and we join in the wishes for a swift recovery of the injured," the document continues.
The incident occurred on Friday when two detonations shook a storage facility where gunpowder and materials for pyrotechnic activities were stored within the Bolívar military barracks, generating great commotion in the area and particularly affecting the families residing in the surroundings of the facility.
The Prosecutor's Office of Bolivia confirmed this Saturday the death of a third soldier, after it was initially reported that two other personnel had died as a result of the explosions.
Rescue teams and authorities are actively conducting search operations in the area of the disaster to locate the thirteen uniformed personnel who are still missing and to try to recover possible bodies among the remains of the barracks.