Up to 100 millimeters of rain a day, winds of 100 km/h, hail: some regions of central and southeastern Brazil have been affected by strong storms since Friday, according to the National Institute of Meteorology. At least eight people died after heavy rains, which also left more than a million homes without electricity in the state of Sao Paulo, authorities announced on Saturday, October 12.
Seven people died in the state of Sao Paulo, the most populous in the country, many of them due to falling trees and collapsing walls, the state’s civil defense reported. In Brasilia, one soldier was killed and another injured by a falling tree while removing a flag in front of military police headquarters, according to the region’s military command.
Also in the capital, officials from the Chamber of Deputies had to open umbrellas in a plenary session due to the water falling from the roof, according to images broadcast on the media and social networks. Leaks that also affected electronic equipment.
Much of the city of Sao Paulo also went dark and at least 1.6 million homes were left without electricity, energy group Enel said. “In some locations, entire sections of the network have been damaged and kilometers of network will need to be rebuilt, poles, transformers and other equipment replaced”the group said in a message.
These intense rains occur after one of the worst periods of drought that Brazil has experienced since records began, with a record of more than 165 days without rain in Brasilia, dry weather that has favored the spread of fires.
