The frontal system affecting the country from the Antofagasta Region to Los Lagos has left 31 people affected, 179 in shelters and 40 cut off in the municipality of Los Vilos. Alicia Cebrián, director of the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service (Senapred), reported the figures in a new update.
According to Emol, the agency also warned that the possibility of waterspouts and tornadoes remains in coastal areas, the Coastal Range and valleys between the Maule and La Araucanía regions.
According to the Chilean Meteorological Directorate, the front has moved toward the south-central area. Rainfall and thunderstorms will be strongest during the day between the Maule and Biobío regions.
Emol notes that this forecast does not mean the emergency in the Metropolitan Region is over, although it could indicate that its intensity will decrease in the coming hours.
The housing assessment lists three homes destroyed, two in Valparaíso and one in Coquimbo. Another 29 have major damage, mainly in the Metropolitan Region and O'Higgins, 78 have minor damage and 13 remain under assessment.
Of the 179 people in shelters, 105 are in the Metropolitan Region and 74 in Coquimbo.
During the previous afternoon and night, Senapred sent two Emergency Alert System (SAE) messages, which reach mobile phones directly. The first went to Talagante to reinforce the evacuation of the Ribera del Río settlement because the Mapocho River had overflowed. The second, a preventive message, was sent to Canela, in the Coquimbo Region, asking residents to avoid streams and ravines amid a flood alert.
The use of this tool has a precedent. According to Emol, one of the criticisms the agency received during the mudslide in Las Condes was that it did not issue an SAE alert.
In the Metropolitan Region, water levels rose in the Colina, Chacabuco and Quilapilún streams, although there was no risk of overflowing. In Peñalolén, water began flowing through the Nido de Águilas ravine during the night.
Cebrián reiterated Senapred's recommendations: stay informed through official channels, monitor the weather, stay away from ravines, avoid exposure to dangerous situations and follow instructions from emergency agencies.
As of the update, more than 14 thousand customers remained without electricity across the country. The Metropolitan and Valparaíso regions each account for more than 4 thousand.
