Weeklong rainstorms in Chile, attributed to the El Niño phenomenon, have resulted in at least 10 fatalities and left more than 100,000 people isolated by flash floods. The downpours, which have impacted the country for a week, are being described as one of the most severe weather events in decades.
Torrential rains and strong winds have battered the northern regions of Atacama and Coquimbo, areas typically characterized by arid conditions. Chile's President José Antonio Kast declared a state of emergency on Monday in response to the crisis.
Authorities reported that the storms have also injured 16 people and displaced over 4,000 residents. Approximately 1,031 individuals are currently housed in emergency shelters, while thousands more are without access to electricity or potable water. The rainfall has led to the destruction of 81 homes and damaged more than 20,000 others.
Chile's national disaster response service, Senapred, has issued hundreds of evacuation alerts across 10 of the country's 16 regions. Swollen rivers and flooded roadways have stranded 104,271 people, with Senapred warning that the threat from overflowing rivers may persist even after the rainfall subsides.
"River levels do not necessarily rise at the same time precipitation is falling," stated Alicia Cebrián, the head of Senapred. "Water accumulates in the foothill areas, which means river levels can continue rising even hours after the storm system has passed."
Meteorologists have linked the intense rainfall in Chile to the resurgence of El Niño, a significant climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean known to increase global temperatures and intensify extreme weather occurrences. El Niño typically correlates with increased precipitation in parts of South America.