Heavy rains drenched Chile’s capital and the surrounding region Thursday, triggering mudslides that swept cars through streets, flooded homes, forced residents to evacuate and injured at least six people, authorities said.
President José Antonio Kast declared a state of emergency for Las Condes, a wealthy suburb east of Santiago, giving government agencies more power to respond as torrential rains turned key roads into impassable waterways. The district's mayor, Catalina San Martín, said 14.4 centimeters (5.7 inches) of rain had fallen in recent days — about nine times the average October rainfall — leaving the area “totally saturated.”
