Carnival in Oruro is one of the most famous in the region, certainly the most popular and extravagant in Bolivia. Every year people across the country and the entire world visit the city of Oruro to enjoy the splendor it offers in this time of year.
However, this year's festivities were thrown into second plan and overshadowed by two tragic events which took place on Saturday, and yesterday respectively.
On Saturday, around 18:30 local time, an explosion occurred which took lives of 8 people, and injured many more. The initial report stated that a gas tank exploded due to human error. A tragic, and certainly unintentional event, which saddened the entire country.
But yesterday, again around 18:30 local time, there was a second explosion, just a block away from where the first one occurred. There was a lot of damage and 4 people lost their lives whilst many were injured.
Chaos and panic swept through the city like wildfire, police were everywhere on the streets, the whole city was paralyzed. Soon after, reports started coming in that the police arrested 3 people suspected of commiting this horrible act.
Today, it was announced that the cause of the explosion was more that 3 kg of dynamite, which immediately puts the cause of the first explosion in doubt. Was the first explosion a deliberate act as well? We need to wait and see. The investigation is in progress and the whole country waits for answers.
What was supposed to ve a happy occasion turned into a horrific event, costing the lives of 12 people, and changing the lives of so many forever. Hopefully, the investigators will show what really happened and the people responsible will be punished adequately. Let us hope that scenes like these never happen again.