Southern Brazil reeling from massive flooding

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil — Authorities in southern Brazil rushed Wednesday to rescue survivors of massive flooding that has killed at least 100 people, but some residents refused to leave belongings behind while others returned to evacuated homes despite the risk of new storms.

Heavy rains and flooding in Rio Grande do Sul since last week also have left 130 people missing, authorities said. More than 230,000 have been displaced, and much of the region has been isolated by the floodwaters.

Storms were expected in the state Wednesday evening, with hail and wind gusts reaching up to 37 mph, according to the national meteorology institute’s afternoon bulletin. And the institute forecasts a cold front this weekend with additional rains, to be particularly intense in the state’s north and east.

In Porto Alegre, about 300 people were sheltering at the local club Gremio Nautico Uniao, based in the upscale, little-harmed neighborhood of Moinhos de Vento. Dozens lay on mattresses as volunteers brought boxes filled with feijoada — a typical Brazilian bean-and-pork stew.

Heitor da Silva had heeded authorities’ warnings. Still, he’s anxious about his future.

“I only took my documents, three shirts, two pieces of underwear and my flip-flops. All the rest is gone,” said da Silva, 68. “I already had very little, but that stayed there. When I go home, there will be nothing. Then what?”

Staffers of the state’s civil defense agency said they have struggled to persuade residents of Eldorado do Sul, one of the hardest hit by the floods, to leave their homes. At least four people declined to evacuate.

A flyover of Eldorado do Sul showed hundreds of houses submerged. Residents were using small boards, surfboards and personal watercraft to move around. Mayor Ernani de Freitas told local journalists that the city “will be totally evacuated.”

“It will take at least a year to recover,” he said.