The ‘driest place on Earth’ is covered in pink flowers after a crazy year of rain

The Washington Post

By Angela Fritz  October 29

The Atacama Desert in Chile, known as the driest place on Earth, is awash with color after a year’s worth of extreme rainfall.

In an average year, this desert is a very dry place. Arica, Chile, in the northern Atacama holds the world record for the longest dry streak, having gone 173 months without a drop of rain in the early 20th century. In another Atacama neighbor to the south of Arica, the average annual rainfall in the city of Antofagasta is just 0.07 inches.

Eleven dead, 1,000 homes destroyed, and thousands of people evacuated after fire destroys city in Chile now declared a 'catastrophe zone' by country's president

Valparaiso, a coastal city near the middle of Chile, has been declared a catastrophe zone after a huge fire sprang up yesterday afternoon. Thousands have been evacuated, while the Chilean president has declared the city a catastrophe zone, giving the army permission to step in and evacuate thousands from their homes in the blazing city.