Chile flooding kills 5, forces 13,000 from homes
Pastor Dale Morgan
Chile flooding kills 5, forces 13,000 from homes*
By Antonio de la Jara
Reuters
Thursday, May 22, 2008; 11:25 PM
SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Heavy rains and flooding have killed five people
and forced about 13,000 from their homes in south-central Chile, some
evacuated after rivers swelled and burst their banks, the government
said on Thursday.
Two died in landslides, one was struck by a boulder and another was hit
by a falling tree. One man died of hypothermia.
Television images showed streets turned into rivers in the port town of
Valparaiso, where 3.7 inches (93 mm) of rain fell in 24 hours during two
storm fronts that began on the weekend.
Nearly 350 people were in shelters, while most of the displaced were
staying with friends and relatives, the government said.
Parts of Chile experience downpours and flooding every year in the
run-up to the Southern Hemisphere winter.
The government's National Emergency Office said 7,886 people were
displaced in the southern region of Bio Bio and 4,997 in the
agricultural region of Maule, about 125 miles (200 km) south of the
capital, Santiago.
"The number of displaced has risen," Carmen Fernandez, head of the
office, told local radio. "The number in Maule region is constantly
evolving because we are still in the process of removing people from
some places where water has flooded."
Classes for 390,000 students in the Santiago area were canceled after
drinking water was tainted by sediment.
There were no immediate details of any impact on crops, which had been
hurt by one of the worst droughts in decades.
Officials had to delay the final game of the Apertura soccer tournament
after rain forced the suspension on Thursday of a semifinal match in the
coastal town of Vina del Mar, around 75 miles northwest of the capital.
"We have information about a third system coming in, but the rains will
be more moderate than in the first system," Deputy Interior Minister
Felipe Harboe told reporters.
On a positive note, the rain has refilled hydroelectric dam reservoirs
drained in recent months by the drought, which in turn boosted
electricity sector stocks on Thursday and helped the stock market end in
positive territory.
Authorities said the major Colbun reservoir, owned by the company of the
same name and located in southern central Chile, had seen its levels
rise beyond the May average.
Shares in the company, Chile's second-biggest electricity generator,
rose with dam levels, climbing 5.44 percent to end at 96.75 pesos.
Shares in Endesa Spain's electric utilities also rallied. Endesa Spain's
investment group Enersis closed 2.79 percent higher and generator Endesa
Chile rose 2.16 percent.
The regions most affected by the rains are Maule, Bio-Bio, Araucania and
Los Rios.
(Additional reporting by Monica Vargas and Pav Jordan; Writing by Simon
Gardner; Editing by Peter Cooney)