According to Santiago daily La Tercera, Alexis Sánchez has sent aid to citizens of Tocopilla, the area most affected by the recent torrential storms in Chile.

The Arsenal star has sent two lorries with water, supplies and first-aid materials that arrived in the forward's home town on Monday after flooding caused considerable damage to the city's infrastructure and fatalities.

Town mayor Fernando San Román confirmed the gesture. "He hasn't forgotten about his land and that's why he wanted to be involved. He spoke to us in order to send aid to the people of Tocopilla. We initially discussed bottled water, some basic first-aid products and clothing among other things and it's already in the region".

The humanitarian aid's first stop was in Iquique, a coastal city near the Peruvian border, it then moved south to María Elena for administrative reasons and up to Tocopilla on Monday, to the sports centre to be precise, after tax issues were dealt with. The aid, which is being coordinated by family members and representatives of the Chile international, will be distributed around the affected areas once it arrives. "As soon as the lorries are here, we'll start distributing aid to the affected families, since Alexis asked us to help the families in the quickest and most direct way possible", stated the mayor.

Sánchez has always kept in close contact with his city. As soon as he heard about the devastating floods, he was in contact with family members and the Tocopilla media, who have thanked him for his efforts on social media and in local press.