At least eleven dead and 20 missing leaves an extratropical cyclone in southern Brazil

First modification: 06/18/2023 – 03:32

Authorities in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul said on Saturday that 11 people were dead and 20 others were missing after a winter storm swept through the region.

Among the fatalities there are children. The governor of the southern Brazilian state, Eduardo Leite, said a 4-month-old baby died before rescuers could arrive. Deaths were recorded in seven cities.

“This first moment, from Thursday night until now, is especially to protect human lives, support and rescue people,” Leite said at a press conference on Saturday.

Two ministers from the government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva traveled to the state to show their support and organize investments for Rio Grande do Sul and cities facing a critical situation.

Several highways were still blocked in Rio Grande do Sul and flights to the main cities of the state have been canceled in previous days. Electricity has also been affected throughout the state.

Mayors of the affected cities said twice as much rain fell in 24 hours than would normally be expected for the entire month of June. The mayor of Maquine reported through his social networks that rainfall in his city exceeded 29.4 centimeters in one day.

For their part, the firefighters carried out 2,400 rescues in the 35 cities of Rio Grande do Sul affected by the unusual natural phenomenon.

Climate change behind the extratropical cyclone in southern Brazil?

Scientists in Brazil confirmed that the storm was an extratropical cyclone, a type of weather system that occurs more often in mid- and high-latitudes rather than in the tropics.

This phenomenon is unusual and climate change could be the cause by causing the winter and the rains to become more and more intense.

Although science clarifies that, although it is difficult to relate climate change to the frequency of hurricanes and cyclones, there are transformations that are related to the increase in global temperature and the intensity of these phenomena, according to the journal Nature.

The warming of the marine surface due to the large amount of heat from greenhouse gases that is stored in the oceans influences the behavior of ocean currents throughout the world and causes an alteration in the distribution of heat from the poles to the Equator. and the atmosphere responds by causing extreme events like cyclones.

Cyclones generate very violent winds, torrential rains, high waves and, in some cases, very destructive storm surge and coastal flooding.

Brazil, victim of extreme weather events

This same year, the southeast of Brazil suffered the consequences of extreme weather. São Sebastião, a beach tourist destination some 200 km from the city of São Paulo, managed to receive more than 680 millimeters of rain in just 24 hours in February, more than double what was expected for the entire month and the largest accumulated volume in a day in the history of Brazil, according to the authorities.

More than 4,000 people were displaced from their homes, according to the official count.

The governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas, admitted that the system of alerting the population by text messages was not enough to prevent the tragedy, which forced the installation of sirens in risk areas and the construction of houses for the homeless.

Experts attributed this tragedy, which caused dozens of fatalities, to a combination of the effects of climate change with uncontrolled urbanization.

In Brazil, 9.5 million people live in risk areas subject to landslides or floods.

With Reuters, EFE, AP and local media