Tragic storm and flooding in Argentina: 51 dead, over 2000 evacuated

First of all, I'm sorry if this thread is a bit messy, I'm trying to get together all the facts and translate them. There are still reports coming in of missing and dead people. My heart goes out to my fellow Argentinians that were affected by this tragedy.

I'll try to list sources, most will be in Spanish. Other info I'll write down as I hear it on the local news. Again, I'm sorry if it's a bit difficult to follow.

I'll add more info as I come across it.
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There was a storm in parts of Buenos Aires, Argentina, a few days ago. The capital of the province, La Plata, was one of the places hit the hardest. The water rose over 2 meters (about 6 ft) high, covered cars, flooded streets, destroyed houses. Damages were estimated as 530,6 millions of pesos.


Over 300.000 people lost power. There were 120 calls of missing people, 116 got back to their families but the other 4 were among the 51 casualties (between 20 and 96 years old). You can check the name list here.


There was a storm alert issued for Tuesday and Wednesday, the rain started falling and soon the streets were flooded, there was over 300 ml in a span of 3 hours.

The strength of the water was powerful enough to drag cars and trucks, with the passengers still inside, off the road. Creeks overflowed and the most precarious houses were completely torn off the ground, leaving only a square silhouette.


The people of the affected neighborhoods didn't have time to wait for the authorities so they started evacuating themselves. Some helping fellow neighbors with ropes and helping them get on the roofs.

I heard on the news about a 17 year old boy that was taking care of his grandparents (his grandfather couldn't walk) and managed to get them on the roof of their house, unfortunately, the water was too strong and knocked the house over, dragging the poor family with it. They didn't make it.

Some people were trapped in their cars, like Vanesa Silleti and her 10 month old baby, who were stuck for hours with water surrounding them, no food or light, no battery.



There were 33 centers established were the evacuated families could take refuge in. Trucks full of water bottles, food and clothes have been dispatched but some people say that they haven't received anything yet.

Dozens of volunteers have showed up to sort through the bags of donations, asking people who are interested in helping to sort the clothes and label them as "children's clothes" and "adult's clothes" to make the job easier.



If you live in Buenos Aires and would like to help, there's a list of places where you can volunteer or drop off clothes and food. They are in great need of mattresses, milk, water, diapers, shoes, non perishable food and many other things.

Source of photographs

Thank you for reading.

Pope Francis is deeply saddened by the news of the storm, casualties and damages and is praying for those who lost their lives so they can rest peacefully. He's also encouraging civilian and religious institutions to offer help to those affected.



President Cristina Kirchner has established 3 days of mourning for the, now 52, victims.



There were many stories of people that stepped up to help when firefighters or the police weren't getting there on time. There was a couple, named Alejandro and Adriana, that had a raft in their garage that they had used on vacations, they didn't hesitate and took it out to rescue over 100 people, many of them children and elderly.



Storm in progress:




The provincial government formed a crisis committee and enlisted the help of 400 police officers, Prefecture, Gerndarmería and the Army. Last night 8 patrol cars were missing after having been covered by water.





The government said they were going to give out subsidies and credit lines for those affected so they can rebuild their homes and businesses. Hepatitis was a worry so people are being vaccinated.

Source

Source of photographs

Unfortunately, there has been looting.

Two trucks that transported supplies and mattresses were intercepted and attacked by delinquents and a police officer that tried to stop them was shot in the leg, he's now out of danger.

Source

-Over 100 people with their faces covered broke into a supermarket and emptied it.
-Three police officers were injured while trying to stop the looting of neighborhood stores.

Source

Hospitals were not spared and several received major damage.

-The Children's Hospital kitchen was flooded and all the food was lost. There's no power or water, several rooms flooded, roofs collapsed and the children had to be transferred.

-The Spanish Hospital was also out of power and water and 38 patients in critical condition (including newborns) had to be transferred.

They are low on personnel and are doing the best they can to assist their patients and the people affected by the storm that come in with hypothermia and panic due to the storm.

Source

I know it's not much, but I'd like to thank all those involved in helping, they have my utmost respect.

It's always good to see how people respond to a tragedy like this by giving a helping hand and risking their lives to save others.