More than 2,000 evacuated after floods in Argentina
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Seneweb
More than 2,000 residents have been evacuated in north-eastern Argentina, where El Niño-related floods have killed two people. The provinces of Chaco and Corrientes remain at risk from rising rivers, according to local Civil Protection, Civil Defence and AFP.
More than 2,000 residents left their homes this week in the Argentine provinces of Chaco and Corrientes, in the north-east of the country, after flooding linked to the El Niño climate phenomenon. The floods have already killed two people, according to AFP.
In Chaco, between 1,200 and 1,300 people were taken to safety, local Civil Protection official Gustavo Santos told AFP. In the neighbouring province of Corrientes, around 1,000 residents were also evacuated, according to Civil Defence data released on Wednesday.
In Paso de la Patria, a tourist town in Corrientes, several neighbourhoods were submerged after a dyke broke as a result of flooding on the Paraná. A resident, Juan Pablo Gómez, told AFP that a metre of water had invaded his home. The Paraná, Uruguay and Iguazú rivers have seen their flows increase as a result of rainfall in recent weeks linked to El Niño. Gustavo Santos warned that the river level could continue to rise and fall for several months. The two victims were farm workers who died on Monday while transporting livestock out of flooded areas, according to Corrientes Civil Defence.
