The number of fatalities caused by rains, intensified by an extratropical cyclone in southern Brazil, increased to 40, while 9 people remain missing, according to an official bulletin released this Thursday.
The most affected region is Río Grande do Sul, the southernmost state of Brazil, where there are 39 deaths, three more than the previous day, while another person lost their life in the neighboring province of Santa Catarina.
In Rio Grande do Sul, 6,079 people remain displaced from their homes in the 79 affected municipalities, where floods have invaded homes and destroyed several bridges.
The most affected town is the municipality of Muçum, where there are 14 dead and 9 people remain missing after the rise of the Taquari River, which flooded the area.
The regional government declared this Thursday a state of calamity to deal with what is the largest natural disaster in the history of the region.
In June, Rio Grande do Sul was affected by a cyclone that left 16 dead.
“The situation is critical,” Social Development Minister Wellington Dias said in X. He added that, together with other departments, the MDS has been “providing support to victims, (and) carrying out emergency in the affected areas.”
According to CNN Brazil, this week’s rains are the worst natural disaster to hit Rio Grande do Sul in 40 years.
