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Brazil races to the rescue as storm death toll rises

Floods and landslides follow record heatwave that saw the heat index soar above 62 degrees Celsius (143.6F).

Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Vehicles overturned on a street covered by mud in Mimoso do Sul, after heavy rains hit the southeastern region of Brazil. [Handout via AFP]
Published On 25 Mar 2024

Rescuers raced against the clock on Sunday to help isolated people in Brazil’s mountainous southeast, after storms and heavy rains killed at least 25 people in two states.

A weekend deluge pounded the states of Rio de Janeiro and Espirito Santo, where authorities described a chaotic situation due to flooding.

The death toll in Espirito Santo rose from four to 17 as rescuers advanced, aided by water levels that had dropped overnight as the rainfall temporarily subsided.

The most affected municipality was Mimoso do Sul, a town of almost 25,000 inhabitants in the south of Espirito Santo, where flooding has killed at least 15 people.

Two more people died in the municipality of Apiaca.

State Governor Renato Casagrande described the situation as “chaotic”, though falling water levels were allowing rescuers to make their way to previously inaccessible areas.

At least 5,200 people have been evacuated from their homes, state authorities said.

In the neighbouring state of Rio de Janeiro, at least eight people have been killed, officials said. Four were killed when a house collapsed in the city of Petropolis, 70km (43 miles) inland from the state capital.

The deluge came after Brazil suffered a string of extreme weather events.

Such environmental tragedies “are intensifying with climate change”, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in a post on social media platform X, noting the thousands left homeless by the storm.

Expressing sympathy for the victims, Lula said his government was working with state and local authorities to “protect, prevent and repair flood damage”.

The National Institute of Meteorology had predicted a severe storm, particularly in Rio, with rainfall of 200mm (7.9 inches) a day from Friday through Sunday. Normally, the area receives 140mm (5.5 inches) of rain in all of March.

Rio authorities had declared an administrative holiday on Friday as the storm approached and urged people to stay home.

The storm follows a record heatwave, when humidity helped send the heat index soaring above 62 degrees Celsius (143.6 degrees Fahrenheit).

Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Civil Defense forces help a man who lost his house in Petropolis. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Members of the Civil Defense carry a girl, who remained more than 12 hours under the rubble of her house, which was destroyed by the heavy rains in Petropolis. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Partial view of the municipal cemetery of Petropolis, where several niches were damaged when they collapsed due to the heavy rains. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Civil Defense forces work on the site where a house was destroyed by the heavy rains in Petropolis. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
The deluge came after Brazil suffered a string of extreme weather events, which experts said are more likely to occur due to climate change. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
Civil Defense forces, firefighters and neighbours work to rescue victims in Petropolis. [Pablo Porciuncula/AFP]
Brazil races to save flood victims as storm death toll rises
An aerial view of the flooding in Mimoso do Sul, Espirito Santo state. [Handout via AFP]