Agricultural emergency due to storm in Ñuble, Los Ríos, and Los Lagos

The Ministry of Agriculture declared a state of agricultural emergency in three regions in the south of the country due to the productive damage caused by the hydrometeorological event of July and August 2026. The measure was adopted through three exempt resolutions signed on August 6 by Minister Jaime Campos Quiroga and published in Section I, General Norms, of the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile No. 44,524, of Thursday, August 13, 2026.

The Exempt Resolution No. 486 (CVE 2852685), Exempt Resolution No. 487 (CVE 2852687), and Exempt Resolution No. 490 (CVE 2852680) are issued under Law No. 21,796, the 2026 Public Sector Budget Law, which includes in Item 13 the allocation “Agricultural Emergencies” to finance unforeseen expenses due to climate phenomena and catastrophes. The affected territories had previously been declared a catastrophe-affected zone by Supreme Decree No. 113, of 2026, of the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security.

A storm that hit three regions

• Ñuble Region: Exempt Resolution No. 486 covers all of its 21 communes, after recording accumulated rainfall of between 323 and 1,054 millimeters and wind gusts of up to 90 kilometers per hour.
• Los Ríos Region: Exempt Resolution No. 487 covers its 12 communes; the Pichoy station accumulated up to 1,503.8 millimeters during July, with conditions that persisted in August.
• Los Lagos Region: Exempt Resolution No. 490 is limited to the communes of San Pablo, San Juan de la Costa, and Osorno, where up to 355 millimeters were measured in Huacamapu and the Rahue and Bueno rivers overflowed.

Damage to pastures, crops, and livestock

Persistent rainfall on saturated soils caused waterlogging, flooding, restricted access to farms, and reduced availability of pastures and forage. In the Los Ríos Region, INDAP reported 583 affected male and female farmers in 11 communes, with damage to potato crops, cherry tree covers, greenhouses, cattle and sheep, and poultry. In Ñuble and Los Lagos, sectoral surveys will need to specify the magnitude of the losses, which affect producers in the agricultural, livestock, beekeeping, and forestry sectors.

Aid and scope of the declaration

• Beneficiaries: agricultural producers, livestock farmers, beekeepers, and forestry producers, as well as rural inhabitants of the declared territories.
• Financing: resources from the “Agricultural Emergencies” allocation of the 2026 Budget Law, without committing funds for subsequent years.
• Management: the Regional Ministerial Secretariats of Agriculture, in coordination with municipalities and agricultural services, will identify and register affected persons, assess damages, and channel support actions, with copies of the resolutions to the Budget Directorate and the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service.

The declaration enables a timely sectoral response for the recovery of the productive capacity of thousands of small farmers in the south of the country, in a scenario where climate projections anticipated new rainfall on already saturated soils. Beneficiaries will have to wait for the technical cadasters that will define the targeting of aid according to technical criteria and budget availability.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,524, Thursday, August 13, 2026, Section I (General Standards), pp. 1-2 (official references: CVE 2852685, CVE 2852687, and CVE 2852680).