Chileans bundle up amid the fiercest cold snap in decades
STORY: :: Chileans bundle up amid the most
intense cold snap in nearly 70 years
:: May 15, 2024
:: Santiago, Chile
:: (Francisca Vergara, Student)
"May used to be a super autumn month and now we go from extremely hot to extremely cold."
The weather bureau expects a low of
34 degrees F (1 degree C) this week
:: (Raul Cordero, Climatologist at the University of Santiago)
"Since 1950 onwards, i.e., in the last 74 years, we have not had such an intense cold spell in May. We have had days with even lower temperatures, but now we have a succession of eight days with temperatures well below typical values. So, we are in the presence of the longest cold spell ever recorded in the capital, at least for the autumn months."
For Thursday, the meteorological office expected a minimum temperature of 34 Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) in the central Santiago area.
The change was abrupt -- within days of summer heat ending, mountains near the capital had snowy peaks.
"May used to be a super autumn month and now we go from extremely hot to extremely cold," said student Francisca Vergara.
The Chilean government also declared a "code blue" in six regions in central and south central Chile to help people living on the streets cope with the extreme cold.
