The Brazilian Civil Defense reports 74 injured and 24,600 evacuated, while roads and communications remain interrupted in the state of Río Grande do Sul
The Brazilian Government reported on the social network X about the rescue efforts carried out by the armed forces to locate the missing. (Photo: EFE)
At least 57 people died and another 67 were declared missing after the strong floods caused by the intense rains that were recorded in the southern part of Brazil, according to the most recent balance of that nation’s Civil Defense.
The agency reports 74 injured and 24,600 evacuated, while roads and communications remain interrupted in the state of Río Grande del Sur, with some 300 towns affected since last Friday.
According to the mayor of Porto Alegre, Sebastiao Melo, the dam that dams the Gravataí River began to overflow once again and the inhabitants of the community must leave the place.
For its part, the Brazilian Government reported on the social network
Consequently, the Porto Alegre International Airport suspended its operations indefinitely. City authorities are setting up shelters in sports centers and other facilities, where they have evacuated more than 8,000 people.
Torrential rains also affect the state of Santa Catarina, where the death of a citizen was recorded when the current swept away his car in the municipality of Ipira. This meteorological condition, of “very high severity”, is forecast until tomorrow (this Sunday), as reported by the Civil Defense.
In the midst of this context, the Vice Governor of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Gabriel Souza, reported that the access of people to the affected areas makes rescue efforts difficult. After describing the natural phenomenon as “the greatest tragedy in the history of RS,” he referred to the so-called “tragedy tourism.”
Brazilian rescuers have carried out several complicated and impressive rescues amid the torrential rains affecting the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
The local Military Brigade has been sharing images of some of these rescue operations, carried out in helicopters and with the collaboration of the Aviation Battalion due to the difficult access to many areas.
In this way, the authorities have been able to successfully help those victims who were forced to take refuge from the water by climbing onto the roofs of almost completely submerged houses.
In the town of Bom Retiro do Sul, a woman with mobility problems, her husband and their dog had been trapped in the water on a vehicle that had run aground on a pile of waste. Fortunately, the rescuers managed to reach them and help the woman, who was found hypothermic, her husband and her pet.
Air brigades from other states in the country have come to Rio Grande do Sul to join the efforts. Recently, a team from Paraná carried out the incredible rescue of several people on a roof in the middle of a flooding river.
