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Heavy rains have hit, since May 23, states in the Northeast region. In the states of Alagoas and Pernambuco, the storms left homeless, displaced and victims.
The Minister of Health Marcelo Queiroga, told the CNN that the tragedy caused by the rains in the metropolitan region of Recife this weekend will leave more than 70 dead.
According to the Ministry of Regional Development, R$ 2.5 million will be released in assistance to localities affected by the rains. At this first moment, the resources will be allocated to the two most impacted municipalities: Rio Largo and São Miguel dos Campos, in Alagoas.
O presidente Jair Bolsonaro (PL) afirmou, em publicação no Twitter, que mais recursos serão liberados nos próximos dias.
“We currently have R$1 billion available for relief, assistance and restoration of essential services, which can still be used to rebuild houses destroyed by rain and public infrastructure,” said the president.
Pernambuco
Heavy rain showers hit Recife, Pernambuco, on Friday (27) and Saturday (28). The prefecture declared a situation of emergency due to the situation that affects municipalities in the Metropolitan region since the beginning of the week.
So far, 31 bodies of people who can live in Recife and who are awaiting confirmation from the Institute of Legal Medicine (IML) have been recovered. Of this total, the Recife Health Department has already confirmed that 13 lived in the capital of Pernambuco.
According to the city hall, 2,045 people are sheltered in 35 public facilities, which include schools and day care centers in the municipal education network, state schools, churches, in addition to a social center and a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO).
This Saturday, the city of Recife advised the population to follow the warnings and guidelines of the Civil Defense. In the early afternoon, the city issued an alert, via SMS, to more than 32,000 families who live in risk areas, communicating about the saturation of the soil and the possibility of new rains.
In an interview with CNN , the mayor of Recife João Campos (PSB) said that this is an “extremely challenging time” and the phenomenon is something “completely out of the ordinary”. “It is up to us to be able to work to reduce the impacts of people and to be able to take care of the city”.
“We are going through an extremely adverse moment, it is a meteorological phenomenon known as Onda de Leste, which has reached the Metropolitan Region of Recife. From Monday until today, we have an accumulated of approximately 450 millimeters”.
According to him, in the last 24 hours alone, 234 millimeters were recorded in the most affected region, in Ibura.
alagoas
In Alagoas, 13 municipalities are in an emergency situation due to the storms: Feliz Deserto, São Miguel dos Campos, Traipu, Maceió, Barra de São Miguel, Boca da Mata, Coité do Nóia, Coruripe, Roteiro, Rio Largo, Penedo, Santa Luzia do Norte and Marshal Deodoro.
According to the Alert Room of the Secretary of State for the Environment and Water Resources (Semarh), the atmospheric conditions over oceanic areas near the North and Northeast coast of the Northeast region of the country favor the occurrence of moderate to heavy rainfall.
The state government warns of the possibility of a high risk of flooding, especially in areas with poor urban drainage, flooding in small streams and rising levels of the main hydrographic basins in the state.
According to the state government, São Miguel dos Campos is the municipality with the highest number of people affected, with 3,829 homeless and displaced, according to the latest bulletin from the State Civil Defense.
“The rains flooded the entire lower part of the municipality, so more than 2,000 houses were damaged. The damage is too great. We have many people in shelters, in the homes of relatives and many people have lost their belongings,” Mayor Jorge Clemente said in a statement.
The municipality of Feliz Deserto was also impacted by the flooding caused by the rains. According to the state government, 123 people are homeless and 265 are homeless in the city. In Coruripe, more than 350 people are homeless.
In an overflight of the affected municipalities this Saturday, the commander of the Fire Department Colonel Wolbeck pointed to the decrease in the volume of water in the rivers that overflowed. However, according to him, there is still a critical situation of flooding.
Pre-candidates for the presidency speak out about rains in the Northeast
Pre-candidates for the Presidency of the Republic expressed solidarity with the population affected by the force of the storms in the Northeast region.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT):
“My solidarity with the families of the metropolitan region of Recife who are suffering from the heavy rains. I place myself at the disposal of the mayors of the affected cities and the government of Pernambuco in whatever way possible to help in facing this tragedy”, said Lula in a post on Twitter.
Jair Bolsonaro (PL):
“Our deepest condolences and solidarity to the victims of this sad disaster, as well as the families whose possessions were destroyed by the rains. It’s a difficult time for everyone. We will do what we can to ease this pain. Que Deus abençoe a todos!”, disse Bolsonaro no Twitter.
Ciro Gomes (PDT):
“My solidarity with the people of Recife and Pernambuco, who are suffering a lot from the consequences of the rains. May the public authorities be able to quickly provide all the support to the affected communities”, published Gomes on Twitter.
Simone Tebet (MDB):
“The heavy rains in Recife cause flooding, landslides and a lot of sadness. My solidarity with the people of Pernambuco! May God enlighten and comfort the victims’ families,” Tebet said in a Twitter post.
André Janones (Avant):
“My most sincere feelings and solidarity to the families and friends of the victims of the tragedy that occurred in Pernambuco. I also leave my solidarity with all the families who are currently suffering from the damage caused by the heavy rains”, Janones said in a post on Twitter.
With information from Pedro Zanatta, Giulia Alecrim, Evelyne Lorenzetti, Léo Lopes, Laura Slobodeicov Ribeiro and André Rosa, from CNN
Source: CNN Brasil
