Authorities in Porto Alegre on Wednesday interrupted rescue efforts in southern Brazil amid more rain and the risk of lightning and strong winds that threaten to worsen a catastrophe that has already killed a hundred people and left more of 163,000 seeking refuge.
Army soldiers used amphibious armored cars to rescue people from flooding in Canoas, north of the city, where the waters have reached a depth of about three meters and the streets can only be traversed by boat.
However, the mayor’s office of the capital of the state of Rio Grande do Sul indicated that the arrival of a new storm front, with winds that are estimated to reach 90 kilometers per hour, led to the decision to interrupt the work of the teams seeking to rescue thousands of people who are still in risk areas.
The storms, which began more than a week ago, have already caused 100 deaths in Rio Grande do Sul and another death in the neighboring state of Santa Catarina, also affected by the phenomenon although with a lower intensity.
The balance adds that there are also 128 missing and 372 injured in Rio Grande do Sul, where 80% of the municipalities are totally or partially under water, and some 230,500 people have had to leave their homes.
More than 61,400 homes flooded
The floods damaged at least 61,400 homes, of which 6,200 were completely destroyed, according to partial data released this Wednesday by the National Confederation of Municipalities.
The entity estimates the damage caused so far by the largest environmental tragedy recorded in Río Grande do Sul, a state in southern Brazil bordering Argentina and Uruguay, at 6.4 billion reais (about 1.28 billion dollars or 1.191 million euros).
About half of these losses, some 3.4 billion reais, refer precisely to the damage suffered by homes.
The authorities still do not know the cost of reconstruction, since the true magnitude of the damage can only be calculated once the waters recede.
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