Argentina: More than 7,500 people evacuated in the Buenos Aires region due to flooding

More than 7,500 people have been evacuated since Friday from various cities in Buenos Aires province, in northern Argentina, after flooding caused by heavy rains in recent days, provincial authorities said Saturday.

The almost continuous rains, nearly five times the local May average, caused rivers and ditches to overflow, cutting off half a dozen roads and submerging fields in this featureless pampa (plain) area. They also flooded streets in the outer suburbs of Buenos Aires.

The province's latest official bulletin, published Saturday evening, reported more than 3,100 people "housed in evacuation centers," in addition to 4,400 others rescued from flooded areas "or who voluntarily left their homes in various municipalities."

"This event is absolutely extraordinary, it's the climate, it's changing; it's called climate change," Governor Axel Kicillof told Crónica TV.

The provincial government announced that it has deployed some 300 firefighters, civil protection personnel and police, with the support of boats, inflatable boats and kayaks.

Javier Alonso, the province's security minister, said in a joint press conference with the governor that "more than 400 millimeters have fallen in these three days" and that it would "continue to rain."

He also asked people to "stay home" as a cold front "with a lot of wind" is expected as the storm moves towards the neighboring Entre Rios region.

In the towns of Campana and Zarate, 80 and 90 km north of Buenos Aires, the rain, which has been almost incessant since Friday morning, was expected to resume its intensity overnight after a brief respite on Saturday, according to weather forecasts.

"We've had a total of 425 mm in the last 24 hours, it's crazy, we've never seen anything like it," with areas where the water is "above our shoulders," said Emiliano Riberas, emergency coordinator in Zarate. According to meteorologist Cindy Fernandez, the norm for May in this part of the country is "around 70, 80 mm of water for the entire month. This time, it's quintupled."

In Campana, several families had to spend part of the night on their roofs waiting for help to escape their flooded homes.

"We've lost everything we had, everything we've worked hard for all these years, and we have nowhere to go," Manuel Sanchez lamented Saturday morning, about to be rescued with his children.