Bolivia Declares Nationwide Emergency Over El Niño Weather Pattern
Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz has signed a decree declaring a nationwide state of emergency over El Niño, a large-scale weather pattern that is expected to strengthen before the end of 2026. The declaration, dated November 1, 2026, gives the government a formal legal basis to move resources quickly to respond to the event, according to Al Jazeera.
The decree, which calls the event El Niño 2026-2027, was issued under Law No. 602, a Bolivian national law. It cites the presence of drought and the imminent risk of frost, hail and forest fires, according to the official government gazette.
Drought has affected 78,000 families in six of Bolivia's nine departments, which are its main administrative regions. It has also led to the loss of more than 75,000 cattle, according to the Al Jazeera report.
In a statement reported by DW, Paz warned of severe droughts and flooding as El Niño intensifies. El Niño was due to peak at the end of 2026. In early September, the World Meteorological Organization reported a nearly 100 percent likelihood that the pattern would continue through February 2027.
Bolivia has seen severe water events recently. Floods in the Santa Cruz region in December 2025 killed dozens of people. Elsewhere in the region, Santiago, Chile recorded its rainiest October on record, and wildfires in Peru killed at least 12 people during the same month.
