In March 2011, landslides occurred in some parts of La Paz after prolonged heavy rainfall. The area affected was over 100 hectares in size; the masses of earth and debris pushed down into the valley, burying houses, roads and cars under tons of material. Over 4000 people lost their homes.

Today - a good 12 years after the disaster - these regions are largely uninhabited: most of the former inhabitants have moved away and stayed with relatives or acquaintances. Nevertheless, a few families still live in the destroyed ruins: the picture is one of incomprehensible poverty and despair.

During her assignment in La Paz, Dr. Christina Mickan visited these areas together with the Street Doctors to provide medical care to the people there. A mother came to the ambulance with her feverish and dirty baby and asked for help. The doctor's first reaction was to wash the child thoroughly, because without a minimum level of hygiene, even professional medical help will only bring a very short-term recovery. The young woman explained that they had no access to fresh water for cleaning and drinking: in these places there is simply a lack of everything and only a (re)construction of the infrastructure will be able to improve the situation of the people in the long term.

A tour of the neighborhood also showed how pointless much of the aid provided by the Bolivian government after the landslide was: There are piles of clothes piled up from donations that cannot be used as there is no water for washing. A stove stands around uselessly in one of the huts and serves as a shelter for puppies, as there is no gas cylinder to operate the stove.

Through our support with the Street Doctors, we try to bring a little bit of dignity into the everyday lives of local people, to cheer them up a little and to alleviate acute and severe suffering, at least temporarily.