© Municipalidad de La PazFloods in La Paz, Entre Rios, Argentina, April 2016.
Argentina
Thousands have been affected by heavy rain and flooding in the provinces of Entre Ríos, Corrientes and Santa Fe.
Heavy rain has also affected parts of the province of Formosa where thousands are yet to return to their homes since the Paraguay River overflowed in December 2015.
Entre Rios
Telam news agency say that 7,000 people have been displaced by floods in Entre Ríos province. Severe flooding has been reported in the municipalities of Federación, San José de Feliciano, Villaguay and Colón.
One man died in the floods when he was swept away by an overflowing river between the towns of Sosa and El Tala.
The city of La Paz, in the west of the province, has suffered the worst of the torrential rain. According to province authorities, more than 7,500 people have been affected. The Cabayú Cuatia River overflowed causing damage, closure of bridges and forcing the displacement of people living in the Estación neighbourhood. Houses were also flooded in the neighbourhoods of Milagrosa, Puerto and Ribera del Paraná. The Ministry of Social Development have distributed blankets, food and other relief items to those affected.
© Municipalidad de La PazFloods in La Paz, Entre Rios, Argentina, April 2016.
In San José de Feliciano, in the north, 400 people are homeless after two small rivers - the Coronel and Carrizo - overflowed. Talking to Telam, the city's mayor, Silvia del Carmen Moreno, said that Feliciano had seen over half a metre of rain since Saturday 02 April.
© Municipalidad de La Paz
In Esquina, a town of 40,000 inhabitants in the south of Correnties province, more than 75% of the town was under water. As many as 300 people have been evacuated, and water reached the height of 1 metre in some neighbourhoods. More than 5,000 people have been affected by the floods across the province.
Santa Fe
Heavy rain has affected areas in the north of Sana Fe province, in particular the town of Alejandra, which according to local media, has recorded 550 mm of rain in the last 4 days. Significant parts of the town are completely flooded, and around 20 people have been evacuated.
Intense Rain
The heavy rain began to fall on 05 April 2016. According to the Argentina National Meteorological Service (Servicio Nacional de Meteorologia, SMN), 70 mm of rain in 24 hours was recorded in Gualeguaychu, in Entre Ríos Province, Argentina. The station of Monte Caseros, in Corrientes Province, recorded 81 mm of rain between 05 and 06 April 2016.
According to data reported by authorities in Entre Ríos, as much as 296.4 mm were recorded at Feliciano station, in the north of the province, on 05 April 2016.
In a statement yesterday by the Crisis Committee of Civil Defense of the Municipality of La Paz, it was reported that 345 mm of rain fell between 04 and 06 April.
© SMNRainfall map for Argentina 04 to 05 April 2016.
Further significant rainfall is expected to affect the north of Argentina until Saturday, 09 April 2016.
Uruguay
As an result of the heavy rain in the upper part of the watershed, water levels in the Uruguay River are rising. A point of particular concern is the area downstream of the Salto hydropower plant.
The high amount of water reaching the reservoir forced the managing authority (Comisión Técnica Mixta de Salto Grande) to release higher discharges from the spillway and the outlet. As a result, Uruguay River levels at Salto and Paysandú will exceed the warning thresholds of 12 and 5.5 metres respectively.As a precaution, local authorities of Civil Defence organised the evacuation of 27 people in Salto and 5 in Paysandú.
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