Editor TLN
February 2022 was catastrophic for the city of Petrópolis, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, hit by the worst rains in its history. The city is known for its Imperial Museum and was built in 1845 by Emperor Pedro II as a summer palace, today it is an emblematic place for Brazilians. Among its treasures is the pen with which Princess Isabel signed the Golden Law in 1888, which abolished slavery in Brazil.
On February 15, 2022, it rained more than expected for the entire month: in just three hours, 250 millimeters of water fell. The landslides left 235 dead and nearly 4,000 homeless. Since then, many of the 15,000 people affected by the storm have needed help to feed themselves.
the NGO ‘SOS Serra‘ It was created to deal with the emergency and never stopped helping. Today it continues to deliver a thousand solidarity baskets per month with rice, beans, oil, cassava flour, corn flour and pasta, what is necessary to ensure the food of a family of four people for four weeks.
“The topography of the city is not appropriate for housing because there are many hills. So when people build in these areas, they actually open paths for water to pass through and destroy everything,” explains Carolina Mattos, co-founder of the NGO, as she heads to Chácara Flora, a community that was totally devastated by the rains.
In this neighborhood, perched on the mountain, 23 people lost their lives. The trail of destruction is still evident throughout the city, where 30% of the inhabitants live in areas at risk due to chronic homelessness. After the tragedy, the local government offered social assistance to rent apartments in safer neighborhoods.
In the line for the baskets, there are many people who lost their loved ones during the storm, as is the case of Jussara Aparecida Luiz. Six members of her family died in the landslides, and the rains destroyed her business, a street food stall.
It was his only livelihood. “My biggest problem now is work. I make an effort, I work as a cleaner, I do small services. I’m managing to survive. I lost everything, but I gained new friends, people who support me. Every time I call them, that I tell them that I am in trouble, I get immediate help”, says Jussara, unable to hold back her tears.
In another part of the city we find the ‘Morro da Office‘, a hill that completely collapsed, taking more than 90 people with it, is the most affected area of Petrópolis. A year later, the City Council has started the works to reinforce the slopes, but there is still a lot to be done.
Many residents, like Valéria Ambrósio Fontes, are still traumatized by the rains. From her balcony, this seamstress watched the apocalypse in astonishment. “Within a few minutes, all this fell apart. I knew that back there, facing that hillside, there was a school. I knew that there were classes that day. Not even a minute passed and we heard an even more deafening noise”, recalls Valéria, without stopping crying.
This woman lost several friends in the biggest environmental disaster in Petrópolis and today she needs remedies to deal with anxiety. “Yesterday it threatened rain. On days like these, everyone is terrified, and at night no one gets to sleep. That image always comes back to mind ”, she adds.
In this city of 300,000 inhabitants it is very common to see workers fixing the roads, every time the rain hits, the Civil Protection team goes on alert. From a room full of screens they control in real time if the rivers overflow.
The City Council has created an evacuation protocol and several shelters, since it is impossible to relocate the thousands of people who live in dangerous places. “The entire population has to be trained. This is our biggest challenge, parallel to public works. The citizens of Petrópolis have to understand that they live in a city at risk,” explains Gil Kempers, Petrópolis Municipal Secretary for Protection and Civil Defense.
The lack of popular housing leads the poorest to build houses in steep areas where residence is prohibited. Last year, the Petrópolis City Council spent 15% of the budget earmarked for housing construction.
Of the 2.19 million reais (420,000 dollars) authorized, only 318,000 reais (61,000 dollars) were invested in the “Petrópolis Housing” program, which aims to reduce the housing deficit and coordinate preventive work in risk areas.
Experts agree that the environmental tragedy in Petrópolis is a reflection of climate change and that it could happen again at any time. Since 1988, more than 4,000 people have been killed in Brazil by landslides.
The risk of new floods scares tourists and prevents the recovery of the 500,000 annual visits from before the pandemic.
“Petrópolis lives basically from tourism. The drop in tourism here means a decline in the economy and therefore in public policies, because we receive less investment in the city. If there are fewer tourists, the entire hotel network and commerce suffer, and that has a huge impact for us,” says Claudia Costa, technical coordinator of the Imperial Museum of Petrópolis.
That fateful February 15, a meter of water partially destroyed the garden designed by Pedro II. A group of tourists had to spend the night in the Imperial Museum, the symbol of this historic city. A river of water and mud that destroyed cars, houses and entire families prevented them from returning to their hotel. Today the city fights to heal its wounds and recover normality.
