At least 18 dead in floods in southeastern Brazil

At least 18 people died on Tuesday, February 15, as a result of flooding of rivers in the Brazilian Petropolis in the southeast of the country. This was reported by the G1 TV channel on February 15, citing data from the fire department. According to the channel, the bodies were found after the river level dropped and water left the flooded city center.

It is noted that civil defense recorded 95 incidents, including 80 landslides and 11 flood points.

The footage shows flooded streets, squares and courtyards of residential buildings.

Due to the hurricane, the Department of Education announced that classes in educational institutions were suspended.

More rain fell in six hours than expected for the entire month, with the rain index reaching 259mm.

At the same time, the Minister of Regional Development, Rogerio Marinho, said on his page in Twitter about six people who died as a result of river flooding.

“We regret the six dead in Petropolis. The city suffered from the effects of heavy rains – more than 200 mm [осадков выпало] over the past four hours, causing rivers to overflow their banks. Landslides were recorded in 52 places,” said Marinho.

According to him, the region will soon begin to remove people from risk areas, and support will also be provided to the homeless.

According to the governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Claudio Castru, 120 rescuers are now working to eliminate the consequences of the disaster, and another 60 people have been sent to them.

In January, it was reported that at least 20 people died in Brazil due to flooding. More than 35 thousand residents were forced to leave their homes. The elements covered 40 cities throughout the state of Bahia. Not far from the city of Giussiape, the Duas Ilyas dam broke through. Forecasters predicted the appearance of new landslides. It was reported that heavy rains will continue until the middle of next week.