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Flooding death toll in Brazil climbs to 57, dozens missing


A firefighter carries a girl rescued from an area flooded by heavy rains in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, May 4, 2024.
A firefighter carries a girl rescued from an area flooded by heavy rains in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, May 4, 2024.

The death toll from rains in Brazil's southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul rose to 57, local authorities said Saturday afternoon, while dozens still have not been accounted for.

Rio Grande do Sul's civil defense authority said 67 people were still missing and more than 32,000 had been displaced as storms have affected nearly two thirds of the 497 cities in the state, which borders Uruguay and Argentina.

Floods destroyed roads and bridges in several regions of the state. The storm also triggered landslides and the partial collapse of a dam at a small hydroelectric power plant. A second dam in the city of Bento Goncalves is also at risk of collapsing, authorities said.

In Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, the Guaíba River broke its banks, flooding streets.

A drone view shows a flooded city center after people were evacuated in Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, May 4, 2024.
A drone view shows a flooded city center after people were evacuated in Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, May 4, 2024.

Porto Alegre's international airport has suspended all flights for an indefinite period.

Rain is expected in the northern and northeastern regions of the state in the next 36 hours, but the volume of precipitation has been declining, and should be well below the peak seen earlier in the week, according to the state meteorology authority.

Still, "river water levels should stay high for some days," Governor Eduardo Leite said Saturday in a live video on his social media, adding it is difficult to determine for how long.

People react after being rescued from flood in Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, May 4, 2024.
People react after being rescued from flood in Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, May 4, 2024.

Rio Grande do Sul is at a geographical meeting point between tropical and polar atmospheres, which has created a weather pattern with periods of intense rain and others of drought.

Local scientists believe the pattern has been intensifying due to climate change.

Heavy rains had already hit Rio Grande do Sul last September, as an extratropical cyclone caused floods that killed more than 50 people.

That came after more than two years of a persistent drought due to the La Nina phenomenon, with only scarce showers.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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