Hydropower dam collapses; 74 people are missing in the Rio Grande do Sul state’s worst disaster ever
05/03/2024
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A bridge in Santa Maria was destroyed by floodwaters; heavy rains in the Rio Grande do Sul state this week forced 10,242 to leave their homes and 4,645 to be relocated to shelters — Foto: Mauricio Tonetto/Secom
Heavy rains in Rio Grande do Sul have killed at least 31 people and left 74 missing, in what is already considered the worst disaster in the state’s history. On Thursday (2), Governor Eduardo Leite confirmed the collapse of a dam linked to the 14 de Julho hydropower plant, on the Antas and Taquari rivers. Another 36 people were injured in the 154 municipalities hit by the extreme weather. In total, 71,300 people were affected by the storms, which forced 10,242 to leave their homes and 4,645 to be relocated to shelters.
The hydropower dam is located in one of the areas most affected by the heavy rains that hit the state in recent days, between the municipalities of Cotiporã and Bento Gonçalves. It was built to generate electricity to supply the region. The governor of Rio Grande do Sul admitted that there is a relevant risk of other structures collapsing due to the force of the water, especially in the metropolitan region of Serra Gaúcha. The state government decreed a state of emergency.
“There will be many deaths, unfortunately, and 204 municipalities are at greater hydrological risk. This is already and will be the worst disaster in the state’s history. The numbers are preliminary and incorrect given what is happening right now. There is a risk of dams bursting in the Serra Gaúcha region,” he said.
Given the scenario of crisis, the governor said the priority is to rescue stranded people. “There are patients who need hemodialysis and are in stranded municipalities. We have to bring drinking water to these populations. There are pregnant women that need to be relocated and corpses that need to be taken for burial,” Mr. Leite added.
The government also drew attention to weather forecasts related to the Guaíba River, which has risen above the alert level in the Porto Alegre area. “We estimate that the Guaíba River could reach 5 meters in height, a level greater than that recorded in the last biggest flood, in 1941.”
The governor held a press conference to address the heavy rains alongside President Lula, who visited the state on Thursday (2) and flew over affected areas. “A good meeting does better than a thousand phone calls for this alignment,” the governor said, thanking the president.
President Lula visited the city of Santa Maria with a delegation of ministers and secretaries. The municipality is one of the most affected by the storms and is located almost 300 kilometers from the capital Porto Alegre. On the site, President Lula promised that the federal government would spare no effort to assist the state.
“I made a point of bringing ministers here because I want each of them to pledge, not only before me but also before the press, of what we are committing to do in Santa Maria to mitigate the suffering that this extreme event is causing to the state”, the president added. However, the federal government has not yet detailed the funds to be transferred to the state of Rio Grande do Sul and its municipalities.
As a result of the president’s visit, Chief of Staff Rui Costa created a “situation room” to monitor events in the state. According to him, the room will hold daily meetings to receive demands from state authorities, including on Saturdays and Sundays.
“I ask that everyone remain on duty to provide an immediate response [to the state]. For example, in the healthcare area, it is crucial that we organize to contact municipal health secretaries because, most likely, these flooded cities will lose their stock of medicines and the health situation tends to aggravate,” Mr. Costa said.
The minister of the Secretariat of Social Communication (SECOM), Paulo Pimenta, defended that a new delegation return to Rio Grande do Sul in the coming days. “Maybe we will have to think about visiting the state again next week. There is no road to get anywhere, there are 141 points of closure,” said the minister, who is a licensed member of the Parliament for the Workers’ Party (PT) of Rio Grande do Sul. “We can’t get grocery supplies, fuel supplies. In healthcare, [the situation] is very serious as ambulances have no access. The situation is expected to aggravate in the next few hours,” he said.
Environment Minister Marina Silva, who is a member of the presidential delegation that traveled to Rio Grande do Sul, defended a fiscal exceptionalism similar to that adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow the administrations to have funds available to invest in infrastructure.
“We will have to adopt exceptionalism so that, throughout the year, we can carry out interventions, including relocating people, making changes to the city’s master plan, or changing the entire infrastructure bidding process. Otherwise, we will keep building bridges that will collapse,” said the minister, according to Agência Brasil.
Citing data from the National Center for Monitoring and Alerts of Natural Hazards (CEMADEN), the minister emphasized that 1,038 municipalities in Brazil are at risk of extreme weather events, such as excessive rain or severe droughts, and this number should rise to more than 1,900 cities due to worsening climate change, also according to Agência Brasil.
(With Agência Brasil)
*Por Renan Truffi, Mariana Assis — Brasília
Source: Valor International