Bahía Blanca, a port city in Argentina, was hit by a devastating rainstorm that brought the equivalent of an entire year’s worth of rainfall in just eight hours. The floods have claimed at least 16 lives, and more than a thousand people were forced to evacuate. Around one hundred people are still missing, so the search continues [1].
The city was nearly completely submerged, with streets and houses flooded, hospitals needing to be evacuated, and many families seeking shelter in emergency accommodations. Public transportation was halted, and the airport was closed. Authorities shut off electricity in large parts of the city for a time to avoid further dangers [2].
The Argentine government declared three days of national mourning and provided around 10 billion pesos (approximately 9.4 million USD) in immediate aid. Mayor Federico Susbielles estimates the cost of rebuilding to be over 400 billion pesos (about 375 million USD) [3]. The extreme weather is being seen as a clear example of climate change [4].
The situation remains critical, as new storms have already been forecasted [5].
References
[1] https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/amerika/argentinien-unwetter-100.html
[2] https://www.dw.com/de/argentinien-unwetter-tote-regen-flut-milei-staatstrauer-v3/a-71877423
(Image Source: ©Tagesschau)