BUENOS AIRES: Nine people have died from hypothermia during an especially cold snap that has blanketed Argentina, even in the north, with unusual snowfall in recent days, a non-governmental group said Sunday.

Most of the deaths were of people living on the street in the capital Buenos Aires, said Juan Carr, director of the civil group Red Solidaria, which tracked the fatalities.

According to the national meteorological service, frigid polar air has dumped temperatures as low as minus 14 degrees Celsius (seven degrees Fahrenheit) in the central region, and around freezing in the usually balmy north.

BDST: 1012 HRS, July 19, 2010