Extreme Rainstorm Hits Bahía Blanca, Forcing 1,300 Evacuations and Causing 16 Fatalities!

Urban Paralysis and Emergency Rescue

On March 7, Puerto Blanca, an important port city in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was hit by an extreme rainstorm, with a daily rainfall exceeding 400 millimeters—nearly the city's annual average precipitation. The resulting floods caused severe urban waterlogging, resulting in 16 deaths and the emergency evacuation of over 1,300 people. On March 8, the Argentine authorities announced the launch of a post-disaster reconstruction plan, urgently dispatching a medical train to support the disaster area. Economic Minister Luis Caputo also approved a financial aid package of 10 billion pesos (equivalent to approximately RMB 80 million).

Puerto Blanca: The Lifeline of South Atlantic Shipping

Geographical Location

Puerto Blanca, located at 38°47' South latitude and 62°17' West longitude, is approximately 510 nautical miles from the Port of Buenos Aires. Situated in the southern part of Buenos Aires Province and bordering the Atlantic Ocean, it is Argentina's largest wheat export port and one of the country's most important deep-sea ports. Its strategic location makes it a key node in the shipping network connecting the East Coast of South America with Africa, Europe, and Asia.

The port features multiple berths, with 12 berths for bulk and general cargo terminals, a quay length of 2,080 meters, and a maximum draft of 12.19 meters. The oil terminal has three berths, with a quay length of 880 meters and a maximum draft of 12.19 meters. The port's handling equipment includes various shore cranes, gantry cranes, loading pipes, floating cranes, conveyors, and tugs. The largest shore crane has a lifting capacity of 35 tons, while the floating crane can lift up to 50 tons.

Connectivity with Neighboring Countries

Brazil: As a member of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), Argentina relies on Puerto Blanca for exporting grains (soybeans, wheat) and petrochemical products to Brazil, while importing industrial machinery from Brazil.

Uruguay: Through the La Plata River basin's intermodal network, Puerto Blanca competes with and collaborates with Uruguay's Montevideo Port in regional bulk cargo transportation.

Chile: Although not sharing a border, Puerto Blanca forms a complementary logistics network with Chile's central agricultural and mining regions via overland routes (such as RN35 highway).

Port Characteristics

Bulk Cargo: Dominated by grain exports (wheat, corn), petrochemical products (polyethylene, urea), and fertilizers, which account for over 70% of the port's throughput.

General Cargo: Includes machinery, steel, etc., which are distributed through the port's gantry cranes and warehousing facilities.

Maritime Services:

• Ship Repair and Fueling: The port offers medium-sized dry docks and fuel supply facilities for regional fishing boats and cargo ships.
• Navigation Support: It provides tugboat, pilotage services, and meteorological monitoring to adapt to complex tidal conditions.
• Logistics Integration: The port collaborates with railway companies to achieve multimodal transportation ("port-railway-highway"), reducing inland transportation costs.

Natural Constraints on Port Operations

Draft and Tidal Range:

• Maximum Draft: The main channel's depth of 14 meters can accommodate Panamax bulk carriers (80,000-ton class) but cannot receive Very Large Ore Carriers (VLOCs, requiring over 18 meters of draft).
• Tidal Range: With an average tidal range of only 1.5 meters, Puerto Blanca is a micro-tidal port. While this ensures high loading and unloading efficiency, it also leads to significant siltation problems (annual dredging costs account for 15% of the port's maintenance budget).

Rainy Season Impact:

• Concentrated Rainfall: The port's annual average precipitation is 600 millimeters, with 60% occurring during the rainy season (October to December). This increases the risk of grain moisture in open storage areas, necessitating waterproof warehousing (currently covering only 40% of the area).
• Flood Risk: Seasonal flooding of the Salado River may interrupt the port's railway branches, causing an average of 3-5 days of shutdown per year.

Sustainability Challenges:

Natural conditions limit the expansion of deep-water berths, and high dredging costs force the port to prioritize high-value bulk cargo (such as petrochemicals) over large-scale, low-profit grain exports.

Port Management Efficiency and Potential Issues

Management Efficiency:

• Complex Administrative Hierarchy: The port is managed by the Puerto Blanca Port Authority, which must coordinate with the federal government, provincial authorities, and private enterprises. This results in long decision-making cycles (e.g., dredging project approvals take up to 18 months).
• Technological Lag: The port's low level of automation relies heavily on manual operations, resulting in a cargo damage rate 0.5%-1% higher than international standards.

Corruption and Kickbacks:

• Union Control: The stevedoring union is accused of monopolizing labor supply and charging "additional service fees" (3%-5% of freight costs).
• Rent-Seeking at Public Terminals: According to a 2021 investigation by the Argentine newspaper La Nación, some customs officials collude with logistics companies to charge gray fees under the guise of "expediting customs clearance," increasing trade costs.

Social and Regional Relationships

Immigration and Community Ties:

• Uruguayan and Italian Immigrants: The late 19th-century immigration wave created a multicultural community, with Uruguayan descendants accounting for 8% of the population. This has fostered cultural cooperation between Puerto Blanca and Montevideo (e.g., joint festivals).
• Brazilian Multinational Corporations: Brazilian Petrochemical Company's investment in Puerto Blanca's petrochemical zone has led to cross-border labor mobility.

Regional Conflicts and Cooperation:

• Fishing Disputes: There are fishing rights disputes with Uruguay in the La Plata River estuary, but these are mitigated through MERCOSUR frameworks.
• Energy Interconnection: Discussions with Chile on cross-border natural gas pipelines leverage Puerto Blanca's LNG facilities to supply energy to South America's west coast.

Puerto Blanca, with its deep-water conditions and agricultural hinterland advantages, plays a crucial role in South Cone bulk cargo trade. However, natural limitations and inefficient management restrict its expansion potential. Its deep economic integration with Brazil and Uruguay and transnational social networks provide regional resilience, while corruption issues require systemic reform to enhance competitiveness.

Upstream and Downstream Ports Face Chain Reactions

As a key deep-sea port in southern Argentina, Puerto Blanca's shipping network is linked with neighboring ports, collectively supporting South Atlantic trade. These upstream and downstream ports serve as alternative hubs for cargo diversion, specifically:

Upstream (Northern) Ports

Port of Buenos Aires (Puerto de Buenos Aires)

• Status: Argentina's largest comprehensive port, handling approximately 60% of the country's container freight.
• Function: Primarily focused on the import and export of industrial goods and consumer products, with some agricultural transportation.
• Challenges: Due to outdated facilities and a shallow channel (only 10 meters deep), large vessels rely on outer ports (such as La Plata Port), and its throughput capacity is nearing saturation.

La Plata Port (Puerto La Plata)

• Positioning: An auxiliary port to Buenos Aires Port, specializing in bulk and energy cargo transportation (e.g., oil, natural gas).
• Advantage: With a depth of 12 meters, it can accommodate larger vessels and relieve the pressure on the capital's port.

Downstream (Southern) Ports

Río Gallegos Port (Puerto de Río Gallegos)

• Location: Argentina's southernmost port, near the Strait of Magellan, serving as a vital supply point for Antarctica.
• Function: Mainly exports fishery and oil and gas resources, with a relatively small freight scale, making it unsuitable for large-scale agricultural cargo diversion.

Madryn Port (Puerto Madryn)

• Characteristics: The core port of the Patagonian region, primarily exporting bauxite and chemical products, with a growing cruise tourism business in recent years.
• Limitations: Its infrastructure is heavily industrial-oriented, with limited capacity for agricultural product handling.

Regional Collaborative Port Clusters

Montevideo (Montevideo)

• Strategic Position: A natural deep-water port in the South Atlantic with a depth of 14 meters, it serves as the container transshipment hub of the Southern Cone region.
• Alternative Role: Often acts as an alternative port when Puerto Blanca is blocked, attracting temporary berthing from international shipping companies.

Santos (Santos)

• Global Influence: The largest port in South America, handling 80% of Brazil's coffee and soybean exports, it collaborates with Puerto Blanca to serve trans-Atlantic and Asian routes.

The recent flood has led to a complete suspension of operations at Puerto Blanca, expected to cause short-term disruptions in the regional logistics chain. As a key southern hub in Argentina, the port's interruption may force cargo diversion to upstream Buenos Aires Port or downstream Río Gallegos Port. However, these two ports are already facing saturated throughput capacities, and the diversion pressure may further increase vessel demurrage and freight costs.

Moreover, Puerto Blanca is closely connected to the inland agricultural production areas via rail and road. The interruption of land transportation due to the flood may further delay the distribution of agricultural products, affecting international buyers' supply chains. Analysts point out that Argentina, as the world's third-largest soybean exporter, may face impacts on the global agricultural trade market if port functions are not restored promptly.

Shipping Routes

Puerto Blanca, together with Brazil's Santos Port and Uruguay's Montevideo Port, forms the Southern Cone port cluster, radiating three major shipping routes: the South Atlantic to Cape of Good Hope route, the trans-Atlantic to Europe route, and the Pacific route via the Panama Canal to Asia. As the "gateway" for Argentina's agricultural exports, Puerto Blanca's shipping network covers three directions and is crucial to the global supply chain:

Trans-Atlantic to Europe Route

• Path: Puerto Blanca → South Atlantic → Strait of Gibraltar → Major European ports (e.g., Rotterdam, Hamburg).
• Cargo: Primarily agricultural products such as soybeans, wheat, and beef, with European industrial equipment imported in return.
• Competing Ports: Brazil's Santos Port and Uruguay's Montevideo Port share this route, competing for cargo sources.

Via Panama Canal to Asia Route

• Path: Puerto Blanca → Pacific Ocean → Panama Canal → China (Shanghai, Qingdao), Japan (Yokohama), South Korea (Busan).
• Cargo: Dominated by soybeans and corn, with China being the main destination (accounting for over 70% of Argentina's soybean exports).
• Bottlenecks: High canal transit fees and water level restrictions during the dry season may increase delay risks.

Africa and Cape of Good Hope Route

• Path: Puerto Blanca → Around the Cape of Good Hope → West Africa (Lagos, Nigeria), South Africa (Durban) → Middle East (Dubai).
• Cargo: Combines agricultural exports with imports of Middle Eastern petrochemical products. The recent growth in African grain demand has increased the route's activity.

South American Regional Routes

• Path: Connects with neighboring countries' ports such as Brazil (Santos, Rio de Janeiro), Chile (Valparaíso), Peru (Callao).
• Cargo: Regional complementary trade of industrial parts, minerals, and agricultural products.

Reconstruction and Reflection: Climate Resilience as a Future Focus

Port Accident Review

2023 December Storm Incident:

On December 16, 2023, Puerto Blanca was hit by a prolonged storm with maximum sustained winds of up to 150 kilometers per hour. The storm caused the roof of a skating rink to collapse, killing at least 13 people and injuring dozens. The local government quickly launched rescue operations and issued an orange disaster alert, advising residents to stay indoors.

Historical Extreme Weather Events:

Puerto Blanca experienced a major storm in 1930 with a rainfall of 175 millimeters, while the recent 2025 storm recorded nearly triple that amount.

These events indicate that Puerto Blanca has suffered from natural disasters, especially extreme weather, multiple times in the past. The Argentine government has prioritized port reconstruction, but experts emphasize that the port's location on a low-lying alluvial plain makes it vulnerable to storm surges and extreme rainfall. The disaster exposed the insufficient disaster resistance of the port's infrastructure. How to enhance the port's flood prevention design and optimize the emergency response system in the future will be crucial to ensuring regional economic stability.

In the future, how the Argentine government can enhance the port's disaster resistance in reconstruction and how the international community can collaborate to address the threat of climate change to the global logistics network will be key to ensuring economic stability and food security. The tragedy of Puerto Blanca reminds us that in the face of escalating climate crises, being prepared is no longer a choice but a necessity. This disaster may mark a turning point, pushing global ports from "passive response" to "active defense" and preparing for the next unknown storm.

E-PORTS, as a third-party global intelligent vessel service management platform, offers comprehensive maritime service solutions for vessels in global ports. For inquiries or consultations regarding Puerto Blanca, please contact E-PORTS:

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