RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Paraguayan authorities reported on March 24 that at least three people, including a girl, died the day before in that nation due to heavy rains caused by a storm system that affected the center, south, and east of the eastern region of the country caused considerable material damage.
Local media reported the death of a 34-year-old man in San Lorenzo, Central department. At the same time, firefighters confirmed the death of a 50-year-old man in the town of Villeta, 27 km from the capital, Asunción, who fell into a stream caused by the rainfall.
And the police reported the death of a minor who was swept away by the waters in Ciudad de Este, located 300 km from Asunción at the border with Brazil.
The Dirección de Meteorología e Hidrología (DMH) reported that the storm caused floods and flash floods. In addition, numerous houses, schools, health care centers, and a prison in the department of San Pedro lost part of their roofs during the contingency.
Regarding the damages, which are still being evaluated, the interim minister of the National Emergency Secretariat (SEN), Miguel Kurita, described the floods created by the rains as the biggest problem they had to face. He added that there were reports of damage in the San Pedro, Concepción, and Central departments.
According to SEN, in some cities of the latter region, there were more than 50 millimeters of accumulated rainfalls in approximately 20 minutes.
The DMH issued a warning of a developing weather system, which could generate severe weather events during the morning, with moderate to heavy rains, moderate to strong thunderstorms, and strong to very strong wind gusts. Hail could also fall.
Because of the floods caused by the rain on March 23, local media criticized the lack of storm drains, the poor quality of public works, the lack of urban planning, and the deficiencies in waste collection, particularly in Asunción.
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