At least 12 people died in Argentina due to the torrential rain falling since Friday, at dawn in Baia Blanca, a port of 600 kilometers south of Buenos Aires.

“We have already 12 dead, seven have been identified,” Benos Aires province Javier Alonso told TN TV.

National Security Minister Patricia Bulrich, who went on the spot, said in an interview with local radio station Radio Mitre that Baia Blanca is a “damaged city” and that two girls who were “drifted out of the water” are being sought.

According to the Argentine press, they are two sisters of one and four years old.

Of the 12 victims, at least five, the five were killed on the road, municipal authorities said in a statement, which did not rule out the possibility of other dead in this city of 350,000 inhabitants.

The number of people who have left their homes increased from 1,128 to 1,321 from Friday night to Saturday morning (local time), according to municipal authorities.

As announced, within eight hours 400mm of rain fell, that is, as it falls within one year.

“There is no precedent,” said Javier Alonso. “The largest storm in Baia Blanca was in 1930 to 175mm. This is almost three times as much, ”he said.

The government has released emergency aid of 10 billion pesos (€ 8.6 million).

Television transmitted images of nurses and medical staff to remove babies from the Neonatal Unit of Jose Pena Hospital, the largest in the city.

The Municipal Authorities of Baya Blanca canceled all the city’s activities for Friday and called on residents to stay in their homes until younger, allowing “only heavy vehicles” in view of rescue operations.

Baya Blanca Airport closed until younger and authorities cut some sources of electricity to reduce the risk of electric shock.