An apartment building in Vina del Mar, Chile, was dangerously close to collapsing on Wednesday after heavy rains overnight caused a massive landslide.

Part of the hillside and street collapsed just 15 metres away from the luxury apartment complex, local authorities said, and the building was evacuated. Twenty-five residents have been displaced.

Areas in southern and central Chile have been hit with torrential rains over the past days, prompting President Gabriel Boric to declare a "state of catastrophe" in four regions on Monday.

The winter season has been eventful so far in Chile. The South American country has seen unusually high temperatures and the most intense rainstorms in decades, leaving thousands homeless and roads blocked in the south-central area of the country.

With files from Reuters