Flooded hospitals, streets and collapsing asphalt were the first consequences of a violent rainstorm that began lashing the city at around 3.40am local time.
Authorities are yet to confirm if there are any casualties.
According to reports, the storm dumped more than 270 millimetres of rain in just under four hours and left a large section of the coastal city, home to one of Argentina’s main ports and more than 350,000 people, without electricity for hours.
The storm flooded wards of the Hospital Interzonal General de Agudos “Dr. José Penna,” one of the city’s key health providers, forcing an emergency evacuation of staff and patients, including newborns, as corridors filled up with water.
Images on television showed nurses and medical staff carrying babies in their arms during the evacuation of the hospital’s neonatal ward.
“Patients are being transferred from the Hospital Penna with the help of the Army while the damage is still being assessed,’ the Buenos Aires Province government said in a statement.
Municipal authorities did not report any casualties, but at least 40 households were evacuated, according to reports. “A large part of the city is impassable. Until the peak rainfall lasts, only heavy machinery can be mobilised,” the Bahía Blanca mayor’s office said.
The city is under a red alert from the meteorological service, which says the rain will continue without respite. Schools have cancelled classes and public transport has been halted, with residents told to seek shelter.
“In view of the weather emergency and in order to protect the safety of the residents, the Municipality of Bahía Blanca has ordered a complete cessation of all activities until further notice,” announced the mayor’s office.
Bahía Blanca has a sad history of climatic catastrophes. The last deadly one struck in December 2023 when a windstorm left 13 dead, houses collapsed and caused great damage to infrastructure with multi-million-dollar losses.