storm
More dead after landslide near Rio and it’s raining heavily again
Rescuers and residents search for victims in a landslide-hit area in Petropolis. Photo: Andre Borges/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
As the death toll from floods near Rio de Janeiro rises, further rain has already prompted another landslide.
After landslides and floods caused by heavy rain, the death toll in the mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro has risen to at least 117.
This emerged from a statement from the state of Rio de Janeiro, citing civil protection. According to the Brazilian news portal “G1”, 13 children were among the dead.
Towards Thursday evening it rained heavily again in Petrópolis. Civil Defense activated more than a dozen sirens to warn of the heavy rain. Because of the risk of landslides, rescue teams stopped searching for missing people for their own safety; According to the police, 116 people were still missing. A short rain shower had already fallen over Petrópolis in the afternoon. Another landslide resulted in residents of a neighborhood being evacuated to safety.
24 people have been rescued so far, hundreds taken to more than 30 collection points in the city – churches and schools. Photos showed how people brought to safety were given a meal.
According to the weather station Climatempo, on Tuesday it had rained more in six hours than was expected for the whole month of February. “It was the worst rain in Petrópolis since 1932,” said Governor Cláudio Castro.