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Mexican city hit by freak hailstorm during summer

A hailstorm in Guadalajara buried vehicles and covered roads in several feet of icy slush to create a surreal summer scene.
/ Source: TODAY

Usually the only type of icy slush seen during a Mexico summer is one being sipped through a straw to cool down on a hot day.

The residents of Guadalajara found themselves in many feet of it Sunday morning after a freak hailstorm created a surreal scene by burying cars and roads in mounds of slush.

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A policeman stands next to vehicles buried in slush in the eastern area of Guadalajara, Mexico, after a freak hailstorm. Ulises Ruiz / AFP-Getty Images

"I've never seen such scenes in Guadalajara," Enrique Alfaro, the state governor, told Agence France-Presse.

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A view from above of the icy slush in Guadalajara caused by the hailstorm. Ulises Ruiz / AFP - Getty Images

The temperatures were in the 80s in the Mexican city before the hailstorm hit.

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A woman and a child walk on hail in the eastern area of Guadalajara. Ulises Ruiz / AFP - Getty Images

Residents awoke to an alien-looking landscape and found themselves climbing over piles of slush that were several feet high in some areas.

There were no casualties, but at least 50 vehicles got swept away by the ice in mountainous areas, and nearly 200 homes and businesses were damaged by the hail, AFP reported.

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People remain on the sidewalk of a street covered with hail, which swept away 50 vehicles and damaged nearly 200 homes and businesses. Ulises Ruiz / AFP - Getty Images
Image: A truck is buried in ice after a heavy storm of rain and hail which  affected some areas of the city in
Vehicles were buried in several feet of icy slush as a result of the hail. Fernando Carranza / Reuters

The surreal scene was reminiscent of the icy wonderland in Niagara Falls during the winter and the stunning ice shards in Lake Michigan in the spring, with the major exception that the hailstorm came during a time when Guadalajara is usually scorching hot.

"Then we ask ourselves if climate change is real,'' Alfaro told AFP. "These are never-before-seen natural phenomenons. It's incredible."