Brazil rainfall and landslides displace 6,650 people, death toll rises to 107

Rio De Janeiro: The death toll from heavy rains in Brazil`s northeast Pernambuco state over the past week rose to 107 on Wednesday, with 11 people still missing, according to the state government. At least 6,650 people have been displaced by the rains, which caused major flooding and landslides that buried dozens of houses, causing most of the deaths in the state capital Recife and its metropolitan area. The death toll makes this the second-worst tragedy in Pernambuco`s history, after floods in May 1966 left 175 people dead.

Firefighters and the Brazilian Army were focusing on finding the bodies of those still missing with the help of trained rescue dogs. As many as 24 Pernambuco municipalities have declared a state of emergency, and the federal government has announced it will earmark about 200 million US dollars to rebuild affected areas.

Rescue work had to be suspended intermittently on Tuesday as heavy rainfall continued, which, the fire department warned, could lead to new landslides and flooding in the area. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced on Monday that the government will allocate 1 billion reals (about 210 million U.S. dollars) for the reconstruction of the affected areas.

The rains also took a toll on the states of Sergipe, Paraiba, Rio Grande do Norte and Alagoas, where three people were killed and more than 18,000 were evacuated.