The death toll from massive flooding in Argentina has risen to 56, prompting the government to declare three days of national mourning and drawing a message of concern from Pope Francis.
Most of the victims were found on Wednesday after a second day of record rainfall in Buenos Aires and nearby La Plata, where flooding submerged cars and sent people scrambling to rooftops for safety.
At least 48 people died in La Plata, about 60 kilometres south of the capital, authorities said. La Plata is capital of Buenos Aires province. Six people died in Buenos Aires proper and two others in the city’s suburbs.
“The bodies began to appear as the water subsided,” said Governor Daniel Scioli, as officials confirmed the death toll and locals piled up chaotic heaps of soaked mattresses and destroyed refrigerators.
A senior city official, Santiago Martorelli, told local television the floods were a “catastrophe,” and said La Plata’s schools and government offices had been closed.
There are people on rooftops, in trees waiting for us to rescue them
“There are people on rooftops, in trees waiting for us to rescue them,” Martorelli said, adding that firefighters, civil defence workers, police and soldiers have been deployed to the area to help in rescue operations.