This Saturday, the city of Bahía Blanca remembers the first anniversary of the furious storm that left a balance of 16 dead and hundreds evacuated, with severe flooding and significant infrastructure losses, from which it is still trying to recover. On that Friday, March 7, 2025, and from early on, more than 300 millimeters of water fell in about six hours, both in Bahía Blanca and other nearby localities; that is, the equivalent of the rainfall of four months that is usually recorded in this area of Buenos Aires province. The effect was devastating: there were sudden floods in the streets, with images never seen before, such as piled-up vehicles, urban furniture, and houses that could not withstand the force of the water, amid the desperation of thousands of neighbors who lost their belongings in a few hours. Located 600 kilometers from Buenos Aires and considered the gateway to Patagonia, the city is located on the lower basin of the Napostá stream, which increased its vulnerability, as its overflow and that of the Maldonado channel also caused the catastrophe. The magnitude of the storm, which also affected Daniel Cerri, Villarino, and Puán, among others, motivated the national government to declare three days of national mourning and led scientists and specialists to analyze its possible causes. Specialists identified unprecedented rainfall, the city's location, deficiencies in urban planning, and the growing influence of climate change as determining factors, although they warned that no city is prepared to contain such a large amount of water. TRIBUTE TO THE TRUCK DRIVER AND THE HECKER SISTERS The authorities of Bahía Blanca placed a giant photograph showing Rubén Salazar holding the hands of Pilar and Delfina Hecker at the entrance to the locality of Daniel Cerri, one of the most affected by the historic storm. At the initiative of Marina Hagg, the minors' mother, a tribute was paid to three of the victims of that day, when the Hecker family was traveling in their vehicle on Route 3, heading to Mayor Buratovich.
