Snow falls in one of the world's driest areas
theweathernetwork.com
Wednesday, August 28, 2013, 8:23 AM -
A cold weather system brought heavy rain and snow to parts of South America over the weekend. From Peru to Paraguay and Brazil, it was a rare site to see the precipitation.
The snow also stretched into Chile's Atacama desert, known as one of the world's driest areas.
Residents of San Pedro de Atacama say the weekend snow was the heaviest in three decades for the desert city, which is 1,200 kilometres north of the capital, Santiago.
While amusing for visitors, local officials say they are concerned that the snow and rain could cause some rivers to flood.
The national tourism office says the road to San Pedro de Atacama was temporarily blocked due to the unusual weather.
A few mudslides were reported and heavy machinery was brought in to clear some highways.
This recent blast of snow has some people wondering if it's the result of climate change, stating it's hard to dispute when it's snowing in a desert.
With files from The Associated Press
