The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Floods in Brazil kill at least 75, force 88,000 from homes
Massive floods in Brazil’s southern Rio Grande do Sul state have killed at least 75 people over the past week, and another 103 have been reported missing, local authorities said Sunday.
At least 155 people were injured, while damage from the rains more than 88,000 people from their homes. About 16,000 took refuge in schools, gyms and other temporary shelters in the state, which is Brazil’s fifth-most populous with more than 11.3 million residents.
The floods left a wake of devastation, including landslides, washed-out roads and collapsed bridges across the state. Operators reported electricity and communications cuts. More than 800,000 people are without a water supply, said the civil defense agency, which cited figures from water company Corsan.
A rescue team pulled an elderly man in serious medical condition into a helicopter from a remote area in the
Bento Gonçalves municipality, footage from military firefighters showed. Torrents of brown water poured over a nearby dam.
Saturday night, residents in the town of Canoas stood up to their shoulders in muddy water and formed a human chain to pull boats carrying people to safety, showed video footage shared by local UOL news network.
The Guaiba River reached a record level of 17.5 feet Sunday morning at 8 a.m. local time, surpassing levels seen during a historic 1941 deluge, when the river reached 15.6 feet.
“I repeat and insist: The devastation to which we are being subjected is unprecedented,” state Gov. Eduardo Leite said Sunday morning. He previously had said the state will need a “kind of Marshall Plan to be rebuilt.”