Toxic foam flooded the Colombian city

A huge layer of toxic foam fell from a polluted river into the Colombian city of Mosquera. The foam has broken into cloudy chunks and is drifting with the wind along the streets.

Environmentalists blame the discharges from the industrial zone, as well as household detergents that raise fetid foam in a city about 20 kilometers from the capital Bogota.

Gonzalo Roa, who has lived in the Los Puentes area for 40 years, said that pollution causes breathing problems in children.

"We have had this situation for many years," he said.

Usually, foam is formed in the place where the river or bridge narrows. Turbulence is being created in polluted water, local environmentalists reported.

According to them, similar problems exist along other rivers, and they warn that if they are not controlled, they will bring problems to the health of the population.

According to local authorities, the white toxic foam is partly caused by the mixing of untreated wastewater with chemicals contained in household detergents in Mosquera.

Edwin Garcia, director of the environmental laboratory of the Cundinamarca region, said that the authorities are trying to control this problem and have installed sewage treatment plants.