News: Brazil flood deaths rise to 375

Chemist

Quote:

(Reuters) - Rescue workers struggled on Thursday to reach areas cut off by devastating floods and landslides that have killed at least 375 people in one of Brazil's worst natural disasters in decades.

*******s of mud and water set off by heavy rains left a trail of destruction through the mountainous Serrana region near the city of Rio de Janeiro, toppling houses, buckling roads and burying entire families as they slept.

"It's like an earthquake struck some areas," said Jorge Mario, the mayor of the Teresopolis municipal area, where at least 158 people died.

"There are three or four neighborhoods that were totally destroyed in rural areas. There are hardly any houses standing there and all the roads and bridges are destroyed."

Heavy rains earlier in the week killed 13 people in Sao Paulo state, bringing the total number of deaths in southern Brazil to at least 388.

The disaster poses an early challenge for new President Dilma Rousseff, who was due to fly over the region on Thursday. Beside the immediate crisis of loss of life and property damage, it could further boost rising food prices that have been a major concern for the government.

Hillsides and riverbanks about 60 miles north of Rio, which will co-host the 2014 World Cup and host the 2016 Olympics, collapsed after the equivalent of a month's rain fell in 24 hours from Tuesday. Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper said it was the worst natural disaster to hit Brazil in four decades.

More heavy rain is forecast for the coming days, complicating rescue efforts and raising the risk of further mudslides.

Raging flood waters and rivers of mud totally submerged some houses and left cars crumpled like tin cans. More then 13,500 people were made homeless in the region, the Civil Defense agency said.

The worst-hit area was Nova Friburgo, a rural town first settled by Swiss immigrants, where the death toll was 168, according to local officials.

Mario said rescue teams had yet to reach several of the worst-hit parts of Teresopolis, including one neighborhood where media reports said that around 150 houses were destroyed.

LINES OF BODIES

Dozens of bodies had been lined up outside a police station in the city center awaiting identification before being moved to a church, local taxi driver Vinicius Bittencourt told Reuters.

"The bodies were there because there is no more space in the morgue," he said. "People are walking in the street crying. I've seen people carrying dead children wrapped in blankets."

At least 36 people also died in Petropolis, a picturesque town nestled in the mountains that served as the summer residence for Brazil's royal family in the 19th century
Another 13 people died in the town Sumidouro in the same region, officials said.

Many stranded residents were forced to fend for themselves as rescue operations were hampered by destroyed roads and treacherous terrain.

Television images showed one woman holding a dog in the ruins of her house as powerful floodwaters tore at the remaining walls. She grabbed a rope thrown by residents from a nearby rooftop and was eventually pulled to safety, after dropping the dog into the vicious current.

Rescuers dug desperately in the ruins of houses in search of survivors, often finding only corpses. One success came when a six-month-old baby was rescued alive from the rubble of a house, drawing cheers from residents.

Rousseff, who took office on January 1, has made 780 million reais ($460 million) in emergency aid available for the rescue and reconstruction efforts. The government said it was sending 210 troops from the National Public Security Force, including officials to help identify bodies.

Two Navy helicopters are assisting rescue operations and the Navy is also sending a mobile field hospital to the area.

Landslides and flash floods are common in much of Brazil, often exposing poor urban planning and a lack of preventive action by authorities.

More than 60 people died in mudslides in the coastal resort of Angra dos Reis in January 2010, and about 180 people died when landslides devastated slum communities in Rio last April.
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2012 is near

brIt-()nstar

Quote:

Originally posted by Chemist

2012 is near

I saw the edit...

brIt-()nstar

Heavy rain falls and landslides always come together.

People could've been saved if they put so much investment on geological survey or they evacuated them before rainfall came in...

Departure

I highly doubt the location of the area has to do with 2012. If we got this much rain in the cities, for instance, would you see landslides? No. Just flooded streets. Nothing would be damaged.

You have to take in that we are seeing all these natural disasters in the news because of two reasons:

A). It's in highly populated areas, when in the past, the same type of disasters would affect small populations and they didn't see the need to publize it every 2 seconds.

B). It makes money to invest into the conspiracy around 2012. Get's people interested.

It's like those earthquakes back in 2010. According to the scientists (or whoever does the field of Earthquakes) quoted we get earthquakes every single year. The only reason we got them in the news of the year 2010 is because it's affecting populated sites.

This just proves we are overpopulated and the world wants itself back, even if it means killing a lot of innocent people.

This is God's way of balancing life. I think...

Vini

The problem with floods in Brazil is that the deaths are usually poor people, and how this relate to anything? They built up houses in areas they were not allowed too for being too risky, having had landslides problems in the past, etc, etc...

Chemist

Update: 432 people death

Drais.

Awful.

LittleDreamer

I Live Here
It's a Serious Problem, But Most of Those Deaths Were on Risk Areas;
It always Happen' Because People here biult their houses On Danger Places, then, when it rains...
A Mess

@ The Cheryl Promo on "Similar Threads"

MP2K

Quote:

Originally posted by Departure

I highly doubt the location of the area has to do with 2012. If we got this much rain in the cities, for instance, would you see landslides? No. Just flooded streets. Nothing would be damaged.

You have to take in that we are seeing all these natural disasters in the news because of two reasons:

A). It's in highly populated areas, when in the past, the same type of disasters would affect small populations and they didn't see the need to publize it every 2 seconds.

B). It makes money to invest into the conspiracy around 2012. Get's people interested.

It's like those earthquakes back in 2010. According to the scientists (or whoever does the field of Earthquakes) quoted we get earthquakes every single year. The only reason we got them in the news of the year 2010 is because it's affecting populated sites.

This just proves we are overpopulated and the world wants itself back, even if it means killing a lot of innocent people.

This is God's way of balancing life. I think...

I live for your posts.

RileyFreeman

That is so sad.

Gui Blackout

Yeah it's been crazy here, i'm not even watching TV anymore it's so sad

Lukitoo

I'm watching the news right now, and the numbers are rising, thank God I'm alive

Anthony K.

It's just so tragic, and something similar had already happened one year ago... Except this time the number of dead people has doubled.

RafaelBuzz

it's really sad

here when I live is the same thing every year but (thank you God) I never live that

RafaelBuzz

and a update: now is 490 deaths

Topmaster

Poor people

M A R N ✮

thats awful thats too many

whats with all these floods

Rominho.

Quote:

Originally posted by Vini

The problem with floods in Brazil is that the deaths are usually poor people, and how this relate to anything? They built up houses in areas they were not allowed too for being too risky, having had landslides problems in the past, etc, etc...

so sad

popstar

foxaylove