For the O’Higgins Region, the Chilean Meteorological Directorate (DMC) has issued an alert for the arrival of a cold frontal system, which will bring normal to moderate precipitation and snowfall. Rainfall is expected to reach up to 30 millimeters of water, while snow could accumulate up to 40 centimeters in the mountain areas.
Due to this frontal system, the Chilean Meteorological Directorate updated the Preventive Early Warning for the O’Higgins region, given the possibility of intense rainfall in a short period of time. It is estimated that the rains will begin during the afternoon of this Tuesday, May 7, and will continue until the end of the day, with probable snowfall in the foothills areas.
The Regional Director of the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service, SENAPRED, Marcelo Montecinos expressed his concern about the extreme conditions that are expected, with very icy days and risk of mass removal in high sectors of the valley and the coastal mountain range. Montecinos pointed out that a low isotherm is expected, around 2,100 meters above sea level, which will then rise to almost 3,500 meters in less than 24 hours.
“We are going to have very cold days. In the O’Higgins region we are going to have liquid precipitation, especially on Tuesday afternoon until midnight, where we expect, according to the forecast of the Chilean Meteorological Directorate, up to 24 mm to fall on the coast, up to 28 mm in the valley. mm and foothills we are going to have a lot of water up to 30 mm and then about 10 cm of snow at the end of the afternoon and in the mountain sector up to 40 cm of snow,” said Montecinos.
Adding that “The concern is that all this water – which is not a little – is going to fall in a short period of time during Tuesday afternoon. The danger is that there is a moderate risk of mass removal occurring in the valley sector, high sectors of the Coastal Mountains that could affect communes such as Malloa, Coinco, Doñihue, Coltauco, etc., so you have to be very careful. Be careful not to go to high or mountain areas to avoid risks. This is the most important, intense rain that we are going to have in a short time,” said the regional director of SENAPRED.
The authority ruled out being in the risk indices that were presented last year in communes such as Coltauco or Rengo, since “we are not in those indices at all. It must be remembered that what produced these effects was the high isotherm, it rained in very high sectors, liquid precipitation fell in sectors where there was snow at 1900 meters high, which produced the problem. Now it is the opposite, we are going to have rain in very low sectors and snow in low sectors, the isotherm is going to be at 1100 meters, it is going to be very frozen and in some sectors there could even be hail,” said Montecinos.
FORECAST
Consequently, for this Tuesday, May 7, the greatest amount of rain is expected in the region, as well as hail and snow from 1100 meters above sea level. On the coast, between 15 and 25 mm of rain, winds between 25 and 40 km/h are expected; In the Coastal Mountains and the central valley, rainfall could reach 30 mm. In the foothills, 30 mm of rain and 10 cm of snow are expected to fall.
Meanwhile, for Wednesday, May 8, less intense rainfall is expected, with minor accumulations in the mountain range.
The Chilean Meteorological Directorate has also announced normal to moderate winds in the foothills and mountain ranges, with gusts that could reach 50 km/h.
The changes in the isotherm, according to the DMC report, indicate a significant variation in the height of precipitation: from 2,400 meters on Monday to 1,200 meters on Wednesday.
On the other hand, the National Geology and Mining Service (SERNAGEOMIN), through its Technical Minute for Danger of Mass Removal, indicates that the possibility of occurrence of alluvium and landslides is moderate for the coastline, Coastal Mountains, Longitudinal Valley and Precordillera, while for the Cordillera sector it is Low.
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