Brazil is the sixth country in the world that suffers most from climate catastrophes, according to a survey by the UN (United Nations) released by the Chamber’s portal. Some cities in the country have an old relationship with floods, but the concern of Brazilians increases even more during the summer, a season in which the sultry and hot weather can end with heavy showers across the country.
The third week of January was marked by storms in several regions. On the 16th, residents of Amapá, Amazonas, Maranhão and Ceará were surprised by storms influenced by the ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone), as reported by Climatempo. Flooding, common in large cities, causes inconvenience, landslides and material losses and poses a risk to public health.
Gleison Pinheiro, director of Desentupidor Profissional – a company that provides sewer unblocking services in São Paulo (capital and interior) and Santa Catarina – points out that in this period of the year, the risks of diseases resulting from flooding caused by clogged drains increase and summer rains.
“Exposure to floods increases the risk of acute diarrhea, caused by bacteria, viruses and parasites, as well as typhoid fever, caused by salmonella typhi, a bacteria found in animal feces. Therefore, it is essential to avoid contact with flood waters, ”he says.
In addition to the diseases listed by the specialist, contact with floods can cause contamination by leptospirosis – a disease caused by the bacteria Leptospira, transmitted by direct or indirect exposure to the urine of rodents. Worldwide, the disease can cause more than one million new infections and around 59,000 deaths per year, according to an international study led by Fiocruz Bahia.
How to prevent floods?
According to Pinheiro, it is necessary to undertake some measures in order to prevent flooding in the country’s cities: “It is necessary to invest in the construction of efficient drainage systems, in the vacating of risk areas and in the creation of forest reserves on the banks of rivers” .
More than 8.2 million Brazilians live in risk areas, on the slopes of steep hills or on the banks of streams and rivers, according to data from Cemaden (National Center for Monitoring and Alerts on Natural Disasters).
The need to create reserves on the banks of watercourses, also mentioned by Pinheiro, is one of the premises of the NCF (New Forestry Code), which considers the margins of rivers, lakes and streams as areas of permanent protection.
However, initiatives such as Law 14,285/2021 may compromise these APPs (Permanent Preservation Areas). This is because the law attributes to municipalities the competence to dispose of marginal strips of watercourses and can lead to the extrapolation of the limits set in the NCF, which provided for marginal strips between 30 and 500 meters.
According to Pinheiro, in order to prevent clogging of drains and, consequently, flooding, it is also necessary to work to reduce the levels of pollution and waste generation, as well as to carry out more consistent urban planning.
The director of Professional Desentupidor says that, currently, the most used unclogging service for clogged manholes is the cable, which is made from the use of equipment such as manual machines, springs, tips and other accessories. “It is necessary to use specific equipment so that the team can have direct access to the obstructed pipe”, emphasizes Pinheiro.
In conclusion, he points out that having professionals who work with plungers and exterminators can help to avoid problems in homes and businesses that, consequently, can have repercussions for the whole of society. “In case of problems, consult a trusted plunger”, he concludes.
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