“We work 24 hours a day, I’ve never seen anything like this tragedy,” says SP Fire Major in RS to CNN

Military teams from São Paulo who traveled to Rio Grande do Sul after the storms that flooded hundreds of cities in the state have already rescued at least 900 people alive and around 70 animals in the last six days.

On Wednesday (8), the number of deaths reached 100 and at least 130 people were missing.

The report on the rescues comes from Fire Department Major Adriano José Barufaldi, who commands the team of 31 firefighters, 19 soldiers from the Aviation Command and five veterinarians from São Paulo.

On Wednesday afternoon, the work focused on neighborhoods in Eldorado do Sul, with a “sweep” in search of stranded and at-risk people.

In addition to the agents, eight vehicles, seven vessels and three aircraft have been used in the actions.

“We are working 24 hours a day, on small breaks to rest, but when there is a call, we all go to the field. I have never seen anything like this tragedy,” said the soldier, who has been with the corporation for 27 years.

Dozens of other states are also part of the mobilization.

Due to the severity of the flooding, there is no specific area of ​​activity for the team.

Since disembarking, the major has already visited at least two different municipalities.

In Canoas, one of the cities most damaged by water, he rescued patients in an Emergency Room.

“The water was almost at the ceiling, we removed many children, pregnant women, elderly people, people who were in the ICU. As much as we are used to extreme situations, everything here is very sad and has affected us a lot”, said Barufaldi.

At least 425 municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul were affected by the storms and almost 170 thousand people are homeless and 1.4 million people have been affected so far.

According to the Public Security Secretariat of the State of São Paulo, there is no forecast for firefighters and police officers to return to SP.