MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fallen trees result in two deaths in Uruguay amid storm

Winds reached gusts of 160 kilometers per hour in Colonia del Sacramento

Uruguayan authorities confirmed Sunday that at least two people were killed in the city of Colonia del Sacramento as a result of the heavy storm hitting the area. Heavy rains and material damages were also reported in Montevideo, Durazno, Canelones, and other southern areas.

The victims, who perished due to fallen trees, were identified as an eight-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man.

The 8-year-old died in a camping site in the city of Nueva Helvecia in Colonia when a tree fell on the cabin where he was staying with other classmates from a school and a teacher, the chief of police of Colonia told El Observador.

The other death occurred in the same department after a tree fell and hit two motorcycles on a road, leaving one person dead and others injured.

The Montevideo City Hall received 201 calls for help following the fall of big trees and branches of of different sizes. An entire family was even locked in their house after a tree blocked the door for hours.

Meanwhile, firefighters were summoned to 161 emergencies nationwide, according to Ministry of the Interior sources while 61,107 households were still without electricity by Sunday noon from the total of over 125,000 affected, mostly in Colonia and Canelones.

According to the Uruguayan Institute of Meteorology (Inumet), winds reached gusts of 160 kilometers per hour in Colonia del Sacramento (180 kilometers west of Montevideo), and almost 100 km/h on the outskirts of the Uruguayan capital early Sunday morning. Roofs were flown off and power lines were cut, Inumet also said.

Inumet had issued warnings during the week and orange alerts in the last hours due to the possibility of “severe phenomena” in the areas enventually affected.