Deadly Antarctic winds slammed into southern South America and killed at least 15 people. The brutal cold wave brought record-breaking temperatures that shocked millions of residents. Argentina saw Buenos Aires drop to minus 1.9 degrees Celsius for the first time since 1991. Snow fell across places that had not seen white flakes for decades. Uruguay and Chile also faced their worst winter weather in years.
Buenos Aires residents watched snow fall on beaches where people usually sunbathe during summer months. Maquinchao in southern Argentina recorded a bone-chilling minus 18 degrees Celsius. Uruguay's capital city Montevideo hit its coldest daytime temperature since 1967 at just 5.8 degrees. The Atacama Desert received snow despite being the driest place on Earth. Cities across the region struggled to cope with the sudden freeze.
Governments rushed to protect their citizens from the killer cold. Argentina stopped gas supplies to businesses and lifted price controls on heating cylinders. Uruguay declared a red alert and forced homeless people into warm shelters. Chile opened emergency housing for people living on streets. Nine people died in Argentina and six more in Uruguay from the freezing conditions.
Weather experts believe climate change might have caused this unusual polar blast. The Antarctic air mass traveled much farther north than normal patterns predict. Scientists say extreme cold events are becoming rarer but more intense when they happen. Heat waves have tripled around the world during recent years. Temperatures started climbing back toward normal levels across the affected countries.
Buenos Aires residents watched snow fall on beaches where people usually sunbathe during summer months. Maquinchao in southern Argentina recorded a bone-chilling minus 18 degrees Celsius. Uruguay's capital city Montevideo hit its coldest daytime temperature since 1967 at just 5.8 degrees. The Atacama Desert received snow despite being the driest place on Earth. Cities across the region struggled to cope with the sudden freeze.
Governments rushed to protect their citizens from the killer cold. Argentina stopped gas supplies to businesses and lifted price controls on heating cylinders. Uruguay declared a red alert and forced homeless people into warm shelters. Chile opened emergency housing for people living on streets. Nine people died in Argentina and six more in Uruguay from the freezing conditions.
Weather experts believe climate change might have caused this unusual polar blast. The Antarctic air mass traveled much farther north than normal patterns predict. Scientists say extreme cold events are becoming rarer but more intense when they happen. Heat waves have tripled around the world during recent years. Temperatures started climbing back toward normal levels across the affected countries.
