Nayara Batschke

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake in western Colombia killed at least 285 people, injured nearly 4,000 and disrupted the lives of more than 100,000 people, destroying or damaging homes, schools, medical facilities and infrastructure. Survivors in cities including Cali, Pereira, Manizales and Quibdó struggled to find shelter while government aid remained delayed in some areas. President Abelardo de la Espriella announced partnerships with private companies, subsidies for homeless families and a reconstruction program, while experts stressed that temporary housing, food, healthcare and economic support must come before rebuilding. Local volunteers, Save the Children and international donors were assisting communities, particularly in historically neglected areas such as Chocó and Buenaventura.

Rescue teams in Colombia are searching earthquake rubble for survivors as the critical 48-to-72-hour rescue window narrows. The 7.4-magnitude quake has killed at least 265 people, affected more than 25,800 families and left hundreds or thousands missing, with conflicting figures reported. Volunteers and officials in cities including Cali continue to detect possible signs of life while the government works to coordinate relief efforts.

Retired Chilean Colonel Nelson Haase Mazzei has been arrested and imprisoned after three years as a fugitive, beginning a 25-year sentence for the kidnapping and murder of singer Víctor Jara and prison director Littré Quiroga Carvajal during Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship. Jara’s daughter Amanda welcomed the arrest but said it was difficult to regard it as full justice. Jara was tortured and executed days after the 1973 coup that overthrew Salvador Allende, and official investigations classified his death as a political execution. The case forms part of Chile’s broader, ongoing effort to prosecute dictatorship-era killings, torture and disappearances and to locate victims whose remains are still missing.

Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha, one of the breakout stars of the World Cup after making notable saves against Spain and Argentina, is set to join Chilean club Colo-Colo. Club president Aníbal Mosa said the 40-year-old will travel to Chile for medical examinations before being presented at the Estadio Monumental, with an 18-month contract reportedly agreed. Vozinha's World Cup exposure also caused his social-media following to surge from fewer than 50,000 to nearly 29 million.

Weeklong torrential rains and strong winds in Chile, attributed by meteorologists to the return of El Niño, have killed at least 10 people, injured 16 and displaced more than 4,000. Flooding has stranded over 104,000 people, damaged more than 20,000 homes, destroyed 81 and disrupted electricity and drinking-water supplies, particularly in the northern Atacama and Coquimbo regions. The government declared a state of emergency, while Senapred issued evacuation alerts and warned that swollen rivers could continue rising after rainfall stops.

Merlin, a two-year-old duck who regularly accompanies street vendor Carla Gómez and her son Cristian around Mexico City's historic center, became an internet sensation after appearing in Mexico's national team colors during celebrations for the country's World Cup-opening victory over South Africa. The duck's viral popularity has turned him into the tournament's unofficial mascot, while his family hopes he will continue bringing good fortune to Mexico, a co-host of the World Cup.

Merlin, a two-year-old duck who became a social media sensation while accompanying his family around Mexico City in a Mexico jersey, was allowed onto the Azteca Stadium grounds for a Televisa segment but barred from attending Mexico's match against the Czech Republic. FIFA cited animal-welfare regulations prohibiting animals inside tournament venues. Merlin’s owner, Carla Gómez, said the family was grateful for the public support, while fans celebrated him as an unofficial World Cup mascot and lucky charm. The duck’s growing fame also led to a trademark dispute, with registration of his name ultimately granted to Gómez.

Merlín, a two-year-old duck who became a social media sensation while accompanying his family around Mexico City, was allowed onto the Azteca Stadium grounds to film with Televisa but barred from attending Mexico’s match against the Czech Republic because FIFA regulations prohibit animals inside venues. The duck has since appeared in media interviews, visited the presidential palace and Netflix, and become an unofficial mascot for Mexico’s World Cup supporters. A trademark dispute over his name was resolved in owner Carla Gómez’s favor, and the family planned to watch Mexico’s national team from the stadium without Merlín.

A hantavirus outbreak aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius highlighted the danger posed by a rare rodent-borne disease for which no widely licensed treatments or vaccines exist. The Andes virus, which caused the outbreak, is especially concerning because it can sometimes spread between people. Researchers in Argentina are investigating tocilizumab, an autoimmune-disease drug that appeared to improve survival in a small compassionate-use study, while teams in Chile, the United States and Germany are pursuing antibody therapies and vaccines. Progress has been slowed by limited funding, sporadic outbreaks and the lack of a predictable commercial market, but researchers hope the outbreak and concerns about climate-driven increases in human-rodent contact will renew investment.

Across Latin America, soccer clubs function as powerful sources of identity, community, hope and inherited family belonging, sometimes taking on qualities traditionally associated with religious devotion. Fans maintain rituals known as cábalas, pray before matches, treat club symbols as sacred objects and revere figures such as Diego Maradona and David Arellano. These collective identities can foster solidarity and support, though they may also intensify hostility and violence toward rivals.

The Atacama Desert’s exceptionally dark, dry and high-altitude skies make it a global center for astronomy, including the European Southern Observatory’s planned Extremely Large Telescope. A proposed green-energy complex near the Paranal Observatory was canceled after international pressure from scientists and Nobel laureates, but the dispute exposed weaknesses in Chile’s outdated and unclear sky-preservation rules. Astronomers warn that light pollution, dust, vibrations and atmospheric turbulence from future industrial, mining or energy projects could undermine observations, prompting calls for stricter environmental regulations and better protection of the region’s observatories.

José Antonio Kast, who took office as Chile’s president after winning 58% of the vote, is a practicing Catholic and longtime member of the Schoenstatt movement. His opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage, combined with pledges to tackle crime and deport undocumented immigrants, has attracted socially conservative supporters while raising concerns among abortion-rights and LGBTQ+ advocates. The article places his presidency within a broader rise of right-leaning Latin American leaders and examines Chile’s declining Catholic affiliation, declining trust in the Catholic Church, and continued cultural attachment to religious ideas about family and marriage. Analysts expect the main risks under Kast to be a gradual slowing of rights advances and weakened public policies rather than an immediate rollback, though his administration’s religious orientation and early budget decisions will be closely watched.

Paraguay’s Chamber of Deputies unanimously approved the Mercosur-European Union trade agreement, making Paraguay the fourth and final founding Mercosur member to ratify it after Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil. The deal still requires President Santiago Peña’s signature and faces a possible legal challenge in the European Court of Justice, although the European Commission plans provisional implementation. Supporters describe it as a historic step toward regional integration and a vast free-trade market, while France, left-wing groups and European farmers’ unions warn it could harm European agriculture.

Chile’s newly inaugurated President José Antonio Kast has begun work on his “Border Shield” plan at the northern frontier near Peru. The initiative proposes trenches, fences, drone surveillance and military patrols to deter illegal immigration, drug trafficking and organized crime. Kast has also used emergency powers to strengthen border security and deport people who entered illegally. The measures respond to a sharp increase in Chile’s undocumented foreign population, particularly Venezuelans, and growing public concern over crimes associated with some migrant criminal groups. Kast’s election represents Chile’s strongest rightward shift since democracy was restored in 1990, and his approach echoes that of U.S. President Donald Trump.

The US ambassador to Chile, Brandon Judd, defended travel restrictions imposed on three senior Chilean officials, calling them a sovereign US decision prompted by alleged threats to regional security and critical telecommunications infrastructure. The sanctions, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, appear linked to Chile’s proposed submarine fiber-optic cable connecting the country with China. Chilean President Gabriel Boric condemned the move as unilateral and an infringement on Chilean sovereignty. The dispute has further strained relations between Chile and the United States, just weeks before far-right president-elect José Antonio Kast takes office.

Rugby Unión Libertad, Chile’s first officially registered rugby club created inside a prison, grew from a 2016 workshop at the overcrowded Valparaíso Penitentiary Complex. The team uses intensive training to promote discipline, anger management and teamwork among inmates, and famously played Chile’s national team, Los Cóndores, in 2024. The associated Freedom Foundation supports released prisoners through rugby, therapy, professional training and employment partnerships, while coaches and former inmates stress that social stigma and limited opportunities remain major barriers to successful reintegration.

Chinese exports, particularly automobiles, clothing, electronics and e-commerce goods, are rapidly expanding across Latin America as weak domestic demand and U.S. tariffs push Chinese companies toward new markets. Consumers benefit from lower prices, but local retailers and manufacturers—especially in Argentina, Mexico, Brazil and Chile—face lost market share, factory closures and layoffs. Temu and Shein are accelerating online imports, while BYD and GWM are expanding regional vehicle production. China’s demand for Latin American commodities, infrastructure investment and roughly $153 billion in regional loans and grants have increased its leverage, limiting governments’ ability to resist. Mexico, Brazil and Chile are responding with tariffs, taxes and tighter import rules, but analysts warn that excessive protectionism could provoke Chinese retaliation.

A Chilean court ordered a 39-year-old man to remain in pretrial detention until January 26 over his alleged role in starting the Trinitarias wildfire in the Bio Bio region. Prosecutors say sparks from a poorly maintained wood-burning stove ignited the blaze and cited forestry-company videos and investigative inspections linking the suspect to the fire. The wildfires across central and southern Chile had killed at least 21 people, injured 305, destroyed more than 2,300 homes and burned over 45,000 hectares, with investigations continuing into additional deaths and active fires.

Wildfires in south-central Chile have killed at least 21 people, injured 305, destroyed 2,359 homes and burned about 45,700 hectares. Nearly 8,500 firefighters are battling the blazes while facing gunfire attacks, unauthorized drones that disrupt aircraft operations and suspected arson. Chile has declared national mourning, arrested dozens of people suspected of causing or attempting to cause fires, and begun assessing damage. Mexico, the United States, Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina are providing personnel or equipment, while Chile seeks additional support for firefighting and reconstruction.

Devastating wildfires in central and southern Chile have killed at least 20 people, injured hundreds, destroyed hundreds of homes and consumed roughly 450 square kilometers. Lirquén suffered the worst damage, with about 80% of the town affected, and residents are beginning a difficult reconstruction effort with help from volunteers, local and international aid organizations, medical teams and emergency services. Survivors praise community resilience but criticize the limited government response, while continued fires, evacuations and dangerous weather threaten nearby communities such as Florida.

A mobile veterinary clinic operated by Chile’s investigative police canine brigade and volunteers is treating dogs, cats and other animals injured by devastating wildfires. In Lirquén, where the Trinitarias fire destroyed about 80% of the town, animals are arriving dehydrated, burned and suffering from smoke-related illnesses, while the most severe cases are transferred to veterinary hospitals. The fires have killed at least 20 people nationwide, injured nearly 300 and forced tens of thousands to evacuate, leaving many residents searching for missing pets amid widespread destruction.

José Antonio Kast won Chile's presidential runoff with more than 58 percent of the vote, defeating Communist candidate Jeannette Jara, who received just over 41 percent. Kast campaigned on reducing crime, deporting hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants and revitalizing the economy, ushering in Chile's most right-wing government since the restoration of democracy. Jara conceded and congratulated him, while Kast's victory reflected growing concerns over migration and organized crime and a broader shift toward right-wing leadership across Latin America. His social conservatism, opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage, and favorable views of former dictator Augusto Pinochet remain highly controversial.

José Antonio Kast won Chile’s presidential runoff with more than 58 percent of the vote, defeating leftist rival Jeannette Jara, who received just over 41 percent. His victory is expected to produce Chile’s most right-wing government since the restoration of democracy 35 years ago. Kast campaigned on reducing crime, deporting undocumented immigrants and revitalizing the economy, reflecting broader regional voter concerns about migration and organized crime.

Thirty international astronomers have urged Chile’s government to relocate a proposed AES Andes renewable-energy complex planned about three kilometers from the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in the Atacama Desert. They warn that the 3,000-hectare project—including wind and solar farms, a desalination plant and port—could increase light pollution, dust, vibration and atmospheric turbulence, with ESO estimating a 35% rise in artificial light. AES Corp says its studies show the development would be compatible with astronomy and comply with Chilean regulations, while the project remains under environmental review. The dispute highlights a broader global conflict between industrial expansion and the preservation of increasingly rare dark-sky sites.

Peru plans to declare a state of emergency along its southern border and deploy additional armed forces as Venezuelan and other migrants leave Chile amid rising anti-immigrant sentiment. The movement follows José Antonio Kast’s hardline presidential campaign, including threats to detain and expel migrants without legal status if they do not leave voluntarily. Migrant families have become stranded between Chile and Peru after crossing toward the border, prompting concerns about a humanitarian crisis. Chilean Security Minister Luis Cordero warned that campaign rhetoric can have real consequences and urged that migrants not be used to generate electoral controversy.

Security has become the dominant issue ahead of Chile's presidential election, with Communist candidate Jeannette Jara and far-right candidate José Antonio Kast both promising stronger policing, expanded prisons, improved equipment and better-trained security forces. Although Chile's homicide rate remains low by regional standards, kidnappings, extortion, contract killings and theft have increased, driving public fear and a growing reliance on private guards, cameras, alarms and armored vehicles. President Gabriel Boric's government has created a Ministry of Security, passed an anti-terrorism law and established specialized organized-crime units. Jara supports expanding these state-led measures, while Kast calls for a tougher restoration of order and authority. The rapid growth of private security reflects declining confidence in the state's ability to protect citizens.

Pilot and influencer Ethan Guo donated $30,000 to a children’s cancer foundation as part of an agreement allowing Chilean authorities to close a case over his unauthorized Antarctic landing and alleged submission of false flight-plan data. He must leave Chile within 30 days of making the donation and is barred from reentering the country for three years. Guo denies wrongdoing, saying weather and technical circumstances led him to divert toward Antarctica. After spending more than 60 days at a remote Chilean air base, he returned to Punta Arenas aboard a Chilean Navy icebreaker, while his plane remains in Antarctica pending arrangements for a Chilean pilot to fly it.

A Chilean judge dropped charges against American pilot and influencer Ethan Guo over allegedly submitting a false flight plan and landing without authorisation at Antarctica's Teniente Marsh base. Under the agreement, Guo must donate $30,000 to a children's cancer foundation, leave Chile when conditions permit and accept a three-year re-entry ban. Guo says he had permission to land because of instrument failures and severe icing, while prosecutors allege he supplied false information and endangered air traffic safety. He has been stranded at the Chilean Air Force base for six weeks, and the fate of his aircraft remains uncertain.

American pilot and influencer Ethan Guo maintains that he was legally authorized to land at Chile’s Teniente Marsh base in Antarctica after instrument failures and severe icing created a risk of crashing. Chilean authorities charged him with providing false information and landing without authorization, but the charges were dropped under an agreement requiring a $30,000 donation to a children’s cancer foundation, departure from Chile when conditions permit, and a three-year re-entry ban. Prosecutor Cristián Crisosto continues to argue that Guo deliberately sought to reach Antarctica and endangered air-traffic safety. Guo has remained at the Chilean Air Force base for six weeks because winter conditions have prevented flights, while officials doubt his small aircraft can leave Antarctica intact or meet aviation regulations.

American influencer and pilot Ethan Guo has been stranded at a Chilean military base in Antarctica since landing his Cessna 182Q without authorization after allegedly submitting false flight-plan information. A Chilean judge dropped charges under an agreement requiring him to donate $30,000 to a children’s cancer foundation, leave Chile when conditions permit, and remain barred from Chilean territory for three years. Severe winter conditions and concerns about the aircraft’s flight capability have delayed his departure, while Guo continues seeking approval to leave with the plane.

A collapse at Codelco’s El Teniente copper mine in central Chile killed worker Paulo Marín Tapia, injured nine others and left five miners trapped underground. The incident followed a seismic event whose magnitude was reported differently by the U.S. Geological Survey and Codelco, and authorities are investigating whether it was natural or linked to mining activity. Rescue teams located the collapse but could not establish contact with the missing workers, while Codelco evacuated 3,000 people, halted operations in the affected area and deployed about 100 specialists. Chilean prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into possible safety violations.

Chilean authorities handed six luxury watches stolen from Keanu Reeves’s Los Angeles home to the FBI for return to the actor. The watches, including an engraved Rolex, are valued at approximately $125,000 and were recovered during a Santiago raid that also uncovered stolen cars, phones and designer bags. The recovery is linked to a broader FBI-coordinated investigation into South America-based burglary groups targeting wealthy U.S. households, with 23 Chilean citizens arrested in April; authorities are still determining whether Reeves’s theft was connected to the other burglaries.

Chilean prosecutors dismantled the Los Gallegos branch of Tren de Aragua through years of evidence gathering, financial analysis, surveillance and international cooperation, securing convictions for 34 people and helping reduce Arica's homicide rate. Seized records revealed a centralized criminal bureaucracy financed mainly by migrant smuggling and sex trafficking, with detailed systems for payments, extortion, torture and violence. The investigation is presented as a contrast to the Trump administration's mass deportations of suspected gang members, which experts say remove potential evidence and target some migrants on weak grounds rather than dismantling the network. Although violence has declined, Los Gallegos continues issuing threats from prison, while Chile's security concerns are driving support for tougher policies and boosting far-right presidential candidate José Antonio Kast.

Google and Chile have agreed to deploy the 14,800-kilometer Humboldt Cable, planned for 2027, linking Valparaíso with Sydney through French Polynesia. The first submarine cable across the South Pacific is expected to cost $300 million to $550 million, with Chile contributing $25 million, and could establish Chile as an Asia-Pacific data gateway while attracting investment from technology, mining and banking companies. The project will be open to users beyond Google and comes amid rising demand for cloud services and heightened geopolitical tensions involving China and the United States. Next steps include cable installation, selecting a telecommunications operator and building Chilean landing stations.

Susana Moreira, a 41-year-old Chilean woman with progressive muscular dystrophy, is urging lawmakers to legalize euthanasia before her condition prevents her from communicating or breathing independently. Chile's Chamber of Deputies approved legislation covering euthanasia and assisted suicide in 2021, but the bill remains stalled in the Senate. President Gabriel Boric has made its passage a priority, although political upheaval and the approaching presidential election have narrowed the window for action. Public support has risen sharply, while some healthcare professionals argue that comprehensive palliative care must come first. Advocates counter that the lack of a legal option can push terminally ill people toward riskier, unsupervised deaths.

Two football fans died outside Santiago’s Estadio Monumental before a Copa Libertadores match between Colo-Colo and Brazil’s Fortaleza. Authorities said a group attempting to force entry caused a stampede and the collapse of protective fencing, trapping the victims; one died at the scene and the other at a nearby clinic. Prosecutors are investigating whether a police vehicle was involved. The match was later suspended in the 70th minute after fans invaded the pitch, although the connection to the earlier deaths remains unclear.

Chile plans to ask the United States to extradite Edgar Benítez, who was arrested in Indiana and charged in absentia over the kidnapping and killing of Venezuelan dissident and former army officer Ronald Ojeda. Chilean prosecutors allege that the Tren de Aragua gang carried out the crime, which has led to 24 arrests across Chile, Colombia and the United States. The case has taken on broader diplomatic significance after Chilean investigators alleged that senior Venezuelan officials, including Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, ordered the killing; Venezuela denies the accusations. The extradition process could take months in U.S. courts.

Power was restored to most of Chile after a nationwide blackout left 98% of the population without electricity, though about 220,000 people remained without service. Authorities lifted the curfew, investigated the transmission-line failure and three deaths, and deployed additional security forces amid traffic and public-safety problems. President Gabriel Boric blamed transmission companies, including ISA InterChile, while experts warned that the lack of backup systems exposed major weaknesses in Chile’s electricity infrastructure and could undermine investor confidence. Copper producers, including state-owned Codelco, began resuming operations as supply returned.

A stronger Argentine peso, falling inflation, favorable exchange rates in neighboring countries and the removal of a foreign credit-card tax have driven a sharp increase in Argentines traveling abroad. Chile, Brazil and Uruguay are the leading destinations, offering cheaper shopping, accommodation and beach vacations than Argentina’s domestic resorts. Argentine departures rose 76.4% year over year in December 2024, while tourism officials and industry representatives said exchange rates and broader macroeconomic conditions are determining travel choices.

Former Chilean deputy interior minister Manuel Monsalve was arrested on suspicion of raping a 32-year-old staff member in a hotel room in September. Monsalve, who denies committing a crime, resigned in October after prosecutors opened an investigation. Authorities also allege that he sought hotel security footage and used police to investigate the complaint secretly while still overseeing public security. The case has generated public outrage and intensified criticism of President Gabriel Boric's handling of the allegations, further weakening support for his left-wing government. Interior Minister Carolina Tohá said the investigation must deliver justice, restore public trust and uphold the rule of law.

Chile’s Temple of Satan, founded in 2021 and claiming about 100 members, is seeking legal recognition as a religious association. Despite its name, the group rejects belief in a literal Satan, promotes rationality, individualism and personal autonomy, and bans violence and members with criminal records. Its application has drawn hundreds of prospective members and provoked opposition from Catholic, Anglican, Jewish and Evangelical leaders. Scholars link the group’s growing visibility to declining confidence in traditional churches, including after Catholic sexual abuse scandals, while the government has yet to decide whether to recognize it.

Club Deportivo Palestino, a Chilean soccer team rooted in the country’s large Palestinian diaspora, has turned matches into visible expressions of solidarity with Palestinians amid the Gaza war. Players and fans wear keffiyehs, display anti-war banners and stage symbolic gestures honoring children killed in Gaza. The club’s political identity has generally been accepted in Chile despite an earlier federation fine over a Palestine map on its jerseys. The war has disrupted Palestino’s training and community programs in Gaza and the West Bank while intensifying its cultural and political importance in Chile. The article also places the club’s activism within the longer history of Palestinian migration to Chile and the country’s increasingly critical stance toward Israel under President Gabriel Boric.

A Chilean court ordered prominent lawyer Luis Hermosilla detained pending trial on money laundering and tax fraud charges, citing concerns that he could obstruct the investigation. The case stems from leaked recordings in which Hermosilla allegedly discussed bribing officials at Chile's tax and financial regulators to resolve businessman Daniel Sauer's legal problems. Lawyer María Leonarda Villalobos was also detained, while her husband Luis Angulo received nightly house arrest. The widening scandal has implicated officials, businessmen and political figures, damaging public trust in Chile's institutions and its reputation for clean governance.

At 58, Chinese-Chilean table tennis player Tania Zeng is set to make her Olympic debut for Chile in Paris. Born in Foshan, China, she moved to northern Chile in 1989 to teach table tennis, later retiring from competition to focus on business and family before returning to the sport during the pandemic. Her bronze medal at the 2023 Pan American Games helped revive her career and made her a national celebrity. Ranked 151st in the world, Zeng is concerned about injuries but remains determined to fulfill her lifelong dream, with supporters in Chile and her family in China watching her Olympic appearance.

Chile’s homeless population has risen sharply amid the combined effects of the pandemic recession, soaring housing costs, unemployment, crime and increased migration. Official figures record more than 21,000 homeless people, while aid workers estimate the true number at about 40,000; shelters can accommodate only a small share of them. Authorities have begun including homeless people in the national census, while police and municipal workers remove encampments from public spaces. President Gabriel Boric’s government plans to build 260,000 homes, but advocates and experts fear that the response remains inadequate to the scale of the crisis.

Argentina's President Javier Milei skipped the Mercosur summit in Paraguay to attend a right-wing rally in Brazil, intensifying doubts about the future of South America's major trade bloc. Milei has criticized Mercosur as defective and his foreign minister raised the possibility of bilateral agreements or the bloc's dissolution, while Brazil defended stronger regional institutions. Mercosur has struggled with protectionism, low internal trade, stalled negotiations with the European Union and disputes over Uruguay's pursuit of a separate China deal. Despite the political tensions, Bolivia is set to become the bloc's fifth full member, offering a sign of continued expansion amid growing internal discord.

Jimmy Lippert Thyden González, a Chilean-American adoptee, has filed a criminal complaint against Chile alleging that the state enabled a systematic scheme to remove thousands of babies from biological parents during and around Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship. After being falsely told that her premature son had died, his birth mother, Maria Angelica González, was separated from him and he was adopted by a U.S. family. Chilean judicial reports identify about 20,000 coerced or criminal adoptions, while civil society groups estimate that more than 50,000 families were affected. Although investigations began in 2017 and a DNA database and international cooperation measures have been established, no one has been charged. Thyden González’s case seeks to establish state responsibility and potentially advance claims for acknowledgment and reparations.

Heavy rains and strong winds across central and southern Chile damaged more than 2,000 homes, cut power to about 60,000 people, caused flooding and mudslides, and killed one person when a tree fell on a tractor. Authorities declared disaster zones across Santiago and seven provinces, while landslides in the Biobío region destroyed evacuated homes and flooding in Viña del Mar displaced about 150 people. Classes were suspended in seven regions as the storm system moved toward Santiago.