Brazil Hit With Extratropical Cyclone Leaving 31 Killed In 60 Cities

At least 31 individuals died following the cyclone that inundated southern Brazil.

Aside from the fatalities, the massive floods, which hit that portion of the country, also left 2,300 individuals homeless.

(Photo : Getty Images/Marcelo Oliveira)

Rio Grande de Sul

Rio Grande de Sul Governor Eduardo Leite said that more than 60 cities have been battered by the weather disturbance since Monday evening.

Leite stressed that this has been Rio Grande do Sul state's deadliest cyclone, with floods washing away the houses, forcing motorists to get trapped, and swamping the streets and roads in most of the cities.

"We deeply regret every life lost by the floods, and every life saved by the brave rescue teams brings a lot of emotion. I'm closely following each of the rescues here in Lajeado," Leite said in a post on social media.

Leite said he had been talking to the residents who had been forced to flee from their homes because of the floods. He stressed that the most important thing was to ensure the safety of everyone and avoid further losses.

The official vowed that the local government would provide full support for normality resumption in the next few days, and further said that total mobilization in the search and rescue operations of the affected individuals has already started.

The governor also mentioned that support from other groups and stakeholders have started to come in for the affected families.

According to Leite, he already talked to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva regarding the situation of his constituents.

"This support adds to our mobilization in conjunction with the federal government, which is also doing its part. I received a phone call from President Lula during the day reinforcing the federal aid brought by the delegation of ministers that was in RS today," Leite said.

Meanwhile, in other areas, authorities had found 15 bodies in just one residence in Mucum, a city housing around 50,000 residents.

After the storm had passed, the residents were welcomed by a trail of destruction along the river as most of the buildings have been swept away down to the ground level.

Officials said there was also a sheep that was found hanging from an electrical line and this shows how high the water had risen.

Other areas

Meanwhile, the City Hall of Mucum had advised residents to seek out supplies in order to ensure their needs in the next 72 hours.

On the other hand, other towns have called on their citizens with boats to help in the ongoing rescue efforts.

So far, authorities said that the search and rescue teams have focused their efforts on the Taquari Valley, which is located about 150 kilometers northwest of the state capital, Porto Alegre.

In this area, most of the victims and damage have been recorded.

However, the efforts have already expanded farther west on Wednesday morning, prompting helicopters to be sent to the Rio Pardo Valley.

Weather experts said that the storm is expected to bring impact in the region for the rest of the week, and that Brazil had received the average amount of rainfall that is expected for the entire month of September.

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