Strong winds lifted part of the roof of Terminal de Buses Sur, located on Alameda in the municipality of Estación Central, on the afternoon of Tuesday, October 13. The incident occurred during the rain and hailstorm that hit Santiago.
Meteorologist Elio Brufort of the Chilean Meteorological Directorate (DMC) told Cooperativa that what occurred in the bus terminal area was a "tornadic event", based on footage recorded by residents.
The videos show roof panels breaking away from Terminal Sur and spinning in the air while buses remain parked at the facility. According to a post on X by @radiomotivacl, the wind damage also affected workshop buildings belonging to bus companies in the area.
Brufort said the DMC would need to analyze the footage to determine the phenomenon's characteristics with certainty. He added that, as of shortly before 18:00, they had received no other reports of significant winds in the capital.
A tornadic event describes a phenomenon involving rotating winds, but does not automatically amount to a confirmed tornado. Other specialists consulted by the press made that distinction.
Roberto Rondanelli, director of the Center for Climate and Resilience Research (CR2), reviewed the footage and explained on Mega that rotation was visible, but no connection could be seen between the whirlwind and the cloud. In his view, there was therefore not yet enough evidence to call it a tornado.
Alejandro Sepúlveda, a Mega journalist specializing in meteorology, also urged caution. He observed that the panels were spinning around an axis, although he stopped short of saying the phenomenon was a tornado.
The sources consulted reported no injuries at the terminal. The weather front did cause other damage in the Metropolitan Region: the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service (Senapred) declared a Red Alert, more than 36 thousand customers lost electricity, and the Manuel Montt Metro station flooded, forcing the closure of Pedro de Valdivia.
The hailstorm also caused dozens of parking structure roofs to collapse, with Providencia the hardest-hit municipality. A subsequent preliminary assessment by the DMC classified the phenomenon in Estación Central as an EF0 tornado, with estimated winds of between 105 and 137 km/h and minor damage to roofs and trees in the Alameda area.
