The weather forecast for this weekend in Petrópolis indicates more rain in the coming hours. According to the National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet), the Zona da Mata and the south/southwest of Minas Gerais and the Serra do Rio de Janeiro region are under “great danger”, with the possibility of rains above 60 mm/h or above. of 100 mm/day.
This means, according to the Inmet alert, “risk of major flooding and river overflows, large landslides on slopes, in cities with such risk areas”, such as the municipality of Petrópolis, where it has been raining since Tuesday afternoon ( 15) and at least 146 people have died due to flooding and landslides.
“This rain in Petrópolis should not stop and should continue until at least Monday, with the risk of heavy rains”, warned the head of meteorology at Inmet, Francisco de Assis. “Even if the rains are 30 to 40 mm a day, they can cause a lot of inconvenience, as the soil is still very wet in the region.”
According to the National Center for Monitoring and Alerts for Natural Disasters (Cemaden), in its forecast of geo-hydrological risks for this Saturday, “the possibility of the occurrence of mass movement events in the Serrana Region of Rio de Janeiro remains very high, especially in Petropolis”. Also according to the document, “the high accumulations of precipitation in the last 72 hours and in the last weeks” contribute to the risk scenario.
Also according to Cemaden, due to the continuity of rain, there is a high possibility of new occurrences of floods and flash floods, mainly in the São Francisco rivers, but also in the Serrana Region of Rio, center, north, northwest and Baixada Fluminense of the state, as well as as in Norte de Minas and Zona da Mata in Minas Gerais.
Cemaden’s coordinator, meteorologist Marcelo Seluchi, told CNN that the rain in Petrópolis on Tuesday (15) was the heaviest recorded in the city’s history. Records began to be made in 1932. In just six hours, 260 mm of rain was recorded — most of it, 230 mm, in three hours. It was more than expected for the entire month for the city.
fifth day of searches
The fifth day of searches for victims of the tragedy in Petrópolis was hampered by the occurrence of more rain. This Saturday (19), sirens warned of the possibility of heavy rain and two warnings were sent by SMS and in communication groups with residents to inform about the formation of rain cores. At least 12 roads were completely blocked. Another eight streets had partial closures.
All afternoon, the city was covered by a heavy sawmill. Weather conditions caused the fire department to stop searching Morro da Oficina, one of the places most affected in the tragedy.
In an interview with CNN this Saturday (19), the mayor of Petrópolis, Rubens Bomtempo (PSB), stated that there are areas of risk in almost the entire city and that the constitution of the land favors disasters due to rains.
“There are areas of risk in almost the entire city. A city of 300,000 inhabitants… Extremely rugged terrain, we have some terrain characteristics that don’t favor it either”, said the mayor.
The Fire Department is working on the search for at least 191 missing persons. According to Bomtempo, the work is challenging. “Difficult access: this is the big problem. They are communities, for the most part. The houses that collapsed were on the side of the street, and this ends up making it very difficult for the firefighters to access and work.”
Source: CNN Brasil
