An extra-tropical cyclone killed 21 people and left several thousand homeless in the south of the country. An entire village was virtually submerged under water.
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With our correspondent in Sao Paulo, Martin Bernard
For the second time in three months, an extra-tropical cyclone fatally affected the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Heavy rains and wind hit the Vale del Taquari this time. A village of 1,500 inhabitants was practically swallowed up. Rescuers found 15 dead in the town of Muçum, 150 kilometers from the state capital, Porto Alegre. Residents tried to take refuge on the roofs of houses to escape the rising waters.
The storm also reached the state of Santa Catarina, a little further north. She killed at least one person.
More than 50,000 people from around 60 towns have been affected and more than 3,700 of them have had to leave their homes, according to the latest report from local authorities.
According to Wolnei Wollf Barreiros, Secretary of Civil Defense of Rio Grande do Sul, more than 300 millimeters of rain have fallen in this state in the past 24 hours.
In June, another cyclone had already caused the death of 16 people.
Cyclones are repeated with greater frequency in the region, and with atypical violence. A phenomenon associated with global warming, by specialists.