The death toll from floods and mudslides triggered by torrential storms in southern Brazil has climbed to 56 people, with 74 injured and another 67 missing, the country’s civil defense agency said Saturday.
Fast-rising water levels in the state of Rio Grande do Sul were straining dams and threatening the metropolis of Porto Alegre, one of the largest cities in southern Brazil.
Authorities there were scrambling to evacuate some neighborhoods that had been submerged — in some cases using helicopters to rescue people stranded on roofs.
And heavy rains of “very high severity” are expected to continue into Sunday, Civil Defense authorities said.
The rapid rise of the Guaiba River, which runs through Porto Alegre, brought serious flooding to the city’s historic center.
– ‘Going to be much worse’ –
With waters starting to overtop a dike along another local river, the Gravatai, Mayor Sebastiao Malo issued a stern warning on…
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