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Sao Paulo (AFP) – The death toll from torrential rains that hit southeastern Brazil last weekend rose to 54, authorities said Friday, as Pope Francis dedicated his prayers to the victims.
“So many of you are missing, so many suffered damage… I send you my closeness, the security of my prayer. May God bless you very much,” said the Argentine pontiff in a video broadcast on social networks in VaticanNewsthe official information page of the Vatican.
Sao Sebastiao, a tourist beach destination some 200 km from the city of Sao Paulo, received more than 680 millimeters of rain in 24 hours, more than double what was expected for the entire month and the highest volume accumulated in one day in the history of Brazil, according to the authorities.
“So far, 54 deaths have been confirmed,” among whom “16 men, 16 women and 15 children” have already been identified, the Sao Paulo state government reported on Friday, whose previous balance was 50 deaths.
The authorities estimate that around thirty people are missing and continue the search in the neighborhoods most affected by the landslides and floods.
More than 4,000 people were displaced from their homes, according to the official count.
The governor of Sao Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas, admitted on Thursday that the system of alerting the population by text messages was not enough to prevent the tragedy and announced the installation of sirens in risk areas and the construction of houses for the homeless. .
Experts attribute this type of extreme event 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.
