The heavy rainfall and subsequent flooding in Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul have caused unprecedented devastation. The southern state has been virtually isolated from the rest of the country due to flooded roads and highways, with the main airport in Porto Alegre closed as it was also inundated. Officials have described this as the most severe natural disaster to ever hit the state.
The floods, which began last week, have resulted in the deaths of at least 100 people as of Thursday, with over 163,000 others forced to evacuate their homes and seek refuge elsewhere. Additionally, more than 270 individuals have been injured.
The civil defence authority in the state, which borders Uruguay and Venezuela, has reported that 128 people are still missing and has advised residents living near the Patos lagoon south of Porto Alegre to evacuate immediately due to rising floodwaters. Days of heavy rain since last month have caused rivers to overflow, leading to the catastrophic floods that have impacted around 1.4 million inhabitants of the state.
Currently, approximately 80 percent of the population in Porto Alegre, the state capital, are without access to running water after five of the city’s six water treatment plants ceased operations, according to the BBC.
The city’s Mayor has implemented water rationing, and officials have dispatched tankers to deliver water to residents. A local resident told the BBC that this was an unprecedented situation for the people of Porto Alegre.
“There are thousands of people who have lost their homes. We have no water anywhere. My 90-year-old mother-in-law had to be rescued by emergency services. It’s unbelievable what is happening here,” she said.
Meanwhile, Porto Alegre city hall has instructed civilian rescuers to suspend their operations on Wednesday due to the forecast of more rain, lightning storms, and winds exceeding 80 km per hour, as reported by Reuters news agency.
Army soldiers utilized amphibious armored vehicles to rescue individuals from the flooding in Canoas, located just north of the city. The floodwaters in this area have reached a depth of approximately 10 feet, making it impossible to navigate the streets without a boat.
The national center for natural disasters in Brazil has issued a warning, stating that the southern region of Rio Grande do Sul state remains at a “high risk” of further flooding, as rainfall is expected to resume in the coming days. Meteorological experts from MetSul have also predicted that the region may experience “very large” floods of significant magnitude. Meanwhile, in neighboring Uruguay, storms and flooding have resulted in the closure of highways and the displacement of nearly 800 individuals, with over 3,000 people currently without electricity, as reported by the government of Uruguay.