© AFP-JIJITowering waves pound the seacoast of Vina del Mar, on Saturday as a storm marked by strong winds and fierce downpours approaches from the Pacific Ocean hitting the Chilean coast.
At least five people have been killed in the torrential rains in Chile this weekend, officials said yesterday. Three people were reported killed in extreme northern Chile, which has been battered by powerful winds, torrential rains and mudslides. Two people died on Saturday in the cities of Valparaiso and Coquimbo.
Brigadier general Claudio Hernández Muñoz is in charge of coordinating the response to the storm, Interior Minister Jorge Burgos announced during a press conference at the National Emergency Management Office (Onemi) where he declared a Constitutional State of Exception — a measure that is designed to protect the stability and security of the country, or of a particular area, through the law, when exceptional situations occur.
