Severe storm leaves residents stranded in Rio.

Douglas Correa
Reporter from Agência Brasil

Rio de Janeiro - The storm that hit the city of Rio and Baixada Fluminense with great intensity, since dawn today (11), has caused several problems to the normal life of residents. Avenida Brasil, the main link between the central area and the neighborhoods in the north and west zones, is closed in both directions, due to a large water pocket, near the Trevo das Margaridas, in Irajá, at the entrance to the Presidente Dutra Highway.

The situation is also very complicated in the Pavuna and Jardim América neighborhoods in the northern part of the city, where hundreds of people are stranded in their homes. The Municipal Civil Defense is using inflatable boats to rescue residents and take them to safe locations.

The Pavuna River overflowed. In Manguinhos, in the northern zone, there are also residents stranded, unable to leave their homes. Civil Defense is using boats and large tractors to rescue people. The Via Binário, in the port area, recently inaugurated to replace Avenida Perimetral, which has already had a section imploded and will be completely demolished, was closed in both directions due to flooding of the lanes. According to Mayor Eduardo Paes, the region is still under construction and, as a precaution, suction pumps were installed last night, but the equipment did not provide sufficient flow. "But this was not supposed to happen," said Paes.

The mayor is asking residents to avoid traveling long distances around the city because the rain has let up, "but more rain is still expected throughout the day." Paes said that the sirens of the city's Rio Alert System sounded in nearly 50 communities. He asks that when the siren is activated, residents seek shelter.

According to the mayor, residents should not, on their own, assess whether the rain is heavy enough or not, taking the risk of waiting a little longer. "We have technicians and engineers who analyze the graphs and the accumulated rainfall in those regions, therefore, people should leave their homes when the siren is activated in the community."

The Secretary of Civil Defense and Commander-General of the Fire Department, Colonel Sérgio Simões, said that the firefighters' work is initially focused on rescuing flood victims, mainly in the neighborhoods of Pavuna, Acari, Anchieta, Jardim América, and in the Baixada Fluminense region, in the municipalities of Nova Iguaçu and São João de Meriti.

The secretary said that the reports in Anchieta, where a house collapsed and there were information that a mother and daughter were buried, were incorrect. At the time of the landslide, no one was home and there were no victims. The colonel said that firefighters also rescued a man and a woman who were partially buried due to a landslide in Realengo, in the western part of the city. "It was difficult work, but both were pulled out alive," he celebrated.

Secretary Sérgio Simões said that the rain has subsided and the trend is for the waters to recede, at which point civil defense work will be carried out on the rivers of the Baixada Fluminense and the northern zone, the areas most affected.