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More Than 100,000 Flee Devastating Floods in South America
Up to 160,000 displaced following El Niño pummels Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil for nearly 10 days
Dec 27, 2015
More than 100,000 people have been evacuated throughout the bordering areas of Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil as severe flooding continued to batter the South American region this weekend.
According to new figures released Sunday by the Municipal Emergencies office, as many as 160,000 people fled their homes due to the flooding that began on December 18. This flooding is a devastating result of this season's El Nino storms.
Many of those impacted are low-income families living along the River Paraguay.
The office said, "[The flooding] was directly influenced by the El Nino phenomenon, which has intensified the frequency and intensity of rains. "
The United Nations weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization, warned last month that this year's storm season is the worst in more than 15 years. It will likely bring more flooding and droughts to the tropics and subtropics.
The flooding in South America follows recent severe storms in Yemen and Mexico. In October, after Hurricane Patricia made landfall in Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo and forced the evacuation of 50,000 people, meteorologist Eric Holthaus wrote at Slate that, due to climate change, it was "exactly the kind of terrifying storm we can expect to see more frequently in the decades to come."
Paraguay has been the hardest hit, with an estimated 100,000 displaced, while 20,000 have been left homeless in Argentina and 9,000 in Uruguay. At least eight people have been killed across the region, according to local media.
Paraguay's emergency office also said the river will likely rise in the coming days and may not subside until January.
Paraguay has reportedly declared a state of emergency in Asuncion. On Sunday, Corrientes governor Ricardo Colombi said in Argentina that "the consequences [of the flooding] will be serious."
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Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
argentinabrazilclimate changeel niñoextreme weatherfloodinglatin americaparaguaysouth americastate of emergencyuruguayworld meteorological organizationfloods
More than 100,000 people have been evacuated throughout the bordering areas of Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil as severe flooding continued to batter the South American region this weekend.
According to new figures released Sunday by the Municipal Emergencies office, as many as 160,000 people fled their homes due to the flooding that began on December 18. This flooding is a devastating result of this season's El Nino storms.
Many of those impacted are low-income families living along the River Paraguay.
The office said, "[The flooding] was directly influenced by the El Nino phenomenon, which has intensified the frequency and intensity of rains. "
The United Nations weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization, warned last month that this year's storm season is the worst in more than 15 years. It will likely bring more flooding and droughts to the tropics and subtropics.
The flooding in South America follows recent severe storms in Yemen and Mexico. In October, after Hurricane Patricia made landfall in Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo and forced the evacuation of 50,000 people, meteorologist Eric Holthaus wrote at Slate that, due to climate change, it was "exactly the kind of terrifying storm we can expect to see more frequently in the decades to come."
Paraguay has been the hardest hit, with an estimated 100,000 displaced, while 20,000 have been left homeless in Argentina and 9,000 in Uruguay. At least eight people have been killed across the region, according to local media.
Paraguay's emergency office also said the river will likely rise in the coming days and may not subside until January.
Paraguay has reportedly declared a state of emergency in Asuncion. On Sunday, Corrientes governor Ricardo Colombi said in Argentina that "the consequences [of the flooding] will be serious."
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
More than 100,000 people have been evacuated throughout the bordering areas of Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil as severe flooding continued to batter the South American region this weekend.
According to new figures released Sunday by the Municipal Emergencies office, as many as 160,000 people fled their homes due to the flooding that began on December 18. This flooding is a devastating result of this season's El Nino storms.
Many of those impacted are low-income families living along the River Paraguay.
The office said, "[The flooding] was directly influenced by the El Nino phenomenon, which has intensified the frequency and intensity of rains. "
The United Nations weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization, warned last month that this year's storm season is the worst in more than 15 years. It will likely bring more flooding and droughts to the tropics and subtropics.
The flooding in South America follows recent severe storms in Yemen and Mexico. In October, after Hurricane Patricia made landfall in Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo and forced the evacuation of 50,000 people, meteorologist Eric Holthaus wrote at Slate that, due to climate change, it was "exactly the kind of terrifying storm we can expect to see more frequently in the decades to come."
Paraguay has been the hardest hit, with an estimated 100,000 displaced, while 20,000 have been left homeless in Argentina and 9,000 in Uruguay. At least eight people have been killed across the region, according to local media.
Paraguay's emergency office also said the river will likely rise in the coming days and may not subside until January.
Paraguay has reportedly declared a state of emergency in Asuncion. On Sunday, Corrientes governor Ricardo Colombi said in Argentina that "the consequences [of the flooding] will be serious."
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