(EFE Agency Report).- Devastating floods in southern Brazil have left at least 67 people dead, while another 101 remain missing, authorities reported this Sunday morning.
The state of Rio Grande do Sul, bordering Argentina and Uruguay and the most affected by the rains, reported 66 deaths in the latest balance, while the neighboring state of Santa Catarina recorded one death.
In addition, authorities are investigating whether another six deaths are related to the climate tragedy that has hit the south of the country since the beginning of the week and is already considered the worst natural disaster in the history of the region.
The floods have displaced tens of thousands of people. A total of 80,573 inhabitants have had to leave their homes and move to those of family and friends, while 15,192 have found accommodation in public shelters.
In Rio Grande do Sul, with a population of eleven million people, some 421,000 homes remain without electricity as of this morning and 115 municipalities lack telephone and internet services.
Regarding communication routes, there are still 61 roads with total and partial blockages due to the flooding of the rivers.
The level of the Guaíba River, whose waters have flooded the historic center of the regional capital of Porto Alegre, a city of 1.3 million inhabitants, rose once more this morning to 5.33 centimeters, its highest mark in history.
On the other hand, the city’s international airport, which closed on Friday night following the flood reached its takeoff and landing pads, remains closed.
After visiting the affected region on Thursday, the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, travels once more this Sunday to Rio Grande do Sul to follow up on the response to the emergency, for which the Government has deployed a thousand of soldiers to help the regional Executive.
Rio Grande do Sul authorities have warned that despite reduced rainfall over the weekend, flooding is still expected to continue for several days.
In the last year, southern Brazil has suffered a series of extreme weather events associated with the El Niño phenomenon, which causes an increase in precipitation in this part of the country.
#Death #toll #floods #southern #Brazil #rises
2024-05-09 00:35:49
