Extra-tropical cyclone lashes southern Uruguay, killing one

MONTEVIDEO, April 8 (Xinhua) -- An extra-tropical cyclone battered parts of Uruguay's south and east coasts Tuesday night through Wednesday morning, leaving one person dead, according to reports released by local authorities.

The fatal victim was a 51-year-old man who died in Punta del Este, in the south-eastern Maldonado department, when his vehicle struck a tree knocked down by 100-km-per-hour gusts, and was then hit by another car.

Maldonado municipality said the coastal area was "the hardest hit," with downed trees and power lines, and that officials were working to respond to the aftermath.

Meanwhile, the National Fire Department reported receiving approximately 500 calls by dawn in the capital Montevideo and the metropolitan area to report fallen trees, downed power lines, roofs blown off, and buildings at risk of collapse.

In Montevideo, four people were rescued from a house that partially collapsed, and a young man suffered serious injuries after he was struck by falling branches.

According to Uruguay's Institute of Meteorology (Inumet), the strongest wind gusts were recorded in San Jacinto, in the department of Canelones, where they reached 111 km per hour, and in Atlantida, also in Canelones.

Between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, Inumet issued yellow and orange weather alerts, indicating moderate to significant weather risks on the local scale, to alert residents about the potential impacts of the severe storm.

An extra-tropical cyclone is a large-scale swirling storm system that occurs outside the tropics. ■