Storm in Brazil: More than 40 dead from landslides in Petrópolis

Heavy rain has led to landslides and flooding in the mountains north of Rio de Janeiro. At least 44 people died and many houses were destroyed. Worse events could be prevented with alarm sirens.

Roads become raging rivers. Cars, trees, traffic signs are simply dragged along by the masses of mud. A slope, on which about 40 residential buildings stand, slides down. Cell phone videos document the disaster.

Heavy rain has caused landslides and flooding in Petrópolis, in the mountains north of Rio de Janeiro. Desperate residents are looking for their relatives in the rubble.

Number of missing still unclear

More rain fell in just six hours on Tuesday than was forecast for the entire month of February. In the city of 300,000, which stretches over several mountains and valleys, several slopes have slipped. They buried at least 80 houses under themselves.

The death toll has since risen to at least 44. It is not yet known how many people are missing. Dozens of firefighters and rescue workers are on duty. Residents access it themselves with a simple device.

Alarm sirens saved lives

Petrópolis is around 60 kilometers north of Rio de Janeiro. The city was once founded by German immigrants and later became the summer residence of the Brazilian Emperor Pedro II.

Already in 2011, a storm catastrophe occurred there. More than 900 people had died. The alarm sirens installed at the time saved lives this time, explains Governor Claudio Castro. “The sirens worked perfectly, which probably prevented an even worse tragedy,” Castro said. “But it was a tragedy, from one moment to the next, a lot of rain fell, 259 millimeters. That’s absurd.” The rescue workers are on duty.

Floods in other states as well

In the past few weeks, at least ten people have died from landslides and floods in the neighboring state of Minas Gerais.

There was also tragedy when a rock face fell on a tourist boat on Furnas Dam. The state of Bahia, which borders Minas Gerais to the northeast, had previously experienced the worst flooding in more than 30 years.