The south of Brazil is under downpours. And there are at least 32 dead, dozens injured and thousands homeless. The region was already hit by deadly floods last September.
1 min
With our correspondent in Sao Paulo, Martin Bernard
A dam that bursts and bridges that collapse under the weight of the water. The state of Rio Grande do Sul has been hit again since the beginning of the week by torrential rains, which have caused rivers to overflow and devastated the region. Residents of at-risk areas are the most vulnerable, as are the elderly.
Local rescue teams were quickly overwhelmed by the scale of the phenomenon. The president of Brazil, Lula, visited the site on Thursday. He placed all state resources at the disposal of the local governor, who admitted that it was absolutely impossible to rescue everyone in the current circumstances.
Extreme climatic phenomena are repeated with great frequency. The same region, which is not located in a tropical zone, had already been hit by a violent cyclone in September. The death toll then rose to 53 dead. The fault is El Niño, but also climate change, according to experts.
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