Where the rain brings fear
ARMED with brushes and paint, volunteers touch up houses left standing after devastating floods last year that killed nearly 200 people and displaced half a million in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre.
As residents continue to repair damage a year after Rio Grande do Sul's worst- ever natural calamity, they worry that not enough is being done to buttress the city against another such catastrophe, which experts say is made ever more likely by climate change.
In late April and early May 2024, three months' worth of rain fell on the wealthy state, of which Porto Alegre is the capital, in just 10 days.
The brunt of the deluge was felt in the city of 1.3 million people located on the shores of Lake Guaiba, which is fed by four rivers.
Scientists of the World Weather Attribution later concluded that climate change had doubled the likelihood of the 'extremely rare event' – the kind expected to occur only once every 100 to 250 years.
View of houses painted by artists from the Paredes com Proposito (Purposeful Walls) project at the Menino Deus neighbourhood in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. — AFP
With recovery work still under way, another storm hit the city in March – less severe this time, but again flooding roads, felling trees and knocking out power.
'Nowadays, the rain brings fear and insecurity,' said Jotape Pax, a Porto Alegre resident and urban artist behind the volunteer restoration project.
When last year's mega-storm hit, Porto Alegre was reliant on a faulty barrier of walls and dykes that had been designed in the 1960s.
Due to poor maintenance, the walls were cracked and the gates were held up with sandbags, according to Mima Feltrin, a flood specialist at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Of the 23 water drainage pumps, 19 failed during the floods, she said.
A year later, only two have been fixed.
'It's very worrying because, so far, what we've seen are mostly emergency measures,' said Feltrin, pointing to 'a major gap' in infrastructure reinforcement.
The UN Environment Programme says developing countries will need as much as US$387bil per year by 2030 for projects to adapt to unavoidable climate change, including building sea walls and planting drought-resistant crops.
Poli, a resident of the Sarandi neighbourhood, speaking during an interview in Porto Alegre. — AFP
In 2020, only US$28bil had been forthcoming.
Last year, a report by the Climate Policy Initiative, a research NGO, found that Brazil was spending about US$2.7bil per year to prepare for worsening floods and droughts – not nearly enough, according to experts.
The Institute of Hydraulic Research at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul concluded in a study last December that many deaths in Porto Alegre could have been prevented with an early alert and evacuation system.
In a multi-million dollar lawsuit, the municipality stands accused of 'omissions' that led to flood protection system failures, according to the prosecutor's office.
Mayor Sebastiao Melo said a climate action plan will be presented to the municipal legislature this year, with provision for an early warning system.
The plan also envisions work to reinforce existing dykes and build new ones, the mayor said, while urban drainage systems are already being upgraded.
Feltrin said Porto Alegre needs to completely renew its flood containment system, possibly by looking at solutions applied in other low-lying areas such as New York and the Netherlands.
View of the mud-covered Sao Jose neighbourhood following the devastating floods, in Lajeado, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, last year. — AFP
'It is important to have flood gates, but also parks designed to absorb water,' she said.
At Porto Alegre's central market, a plaque recalls the flooding that had completely submerged the historic building.
It is bustling once again, and with changes such as furniture made of water-resistant stainless steel rather than wood.
'With climate change, this is going to happen more and more often. It scares us a lot, but we are working to be better prepared,' said Nadja Melo, 45, who runs a market eatery.
For others, it has been tougher to bounce back.
Aerial view of the flooded surroundings of the public market in downtown Porto Alegre, last year. — AFP
In one of Porto Alegre's hardest-hit neighbourhoods, Sarandi, dozens of families have been ordered to leave or risk having their homes flooded again in a high-risk zone.
'It is very difficult to start over,' said Claudir Poli, a 42-year-old with two prosthetic legs, a wife and three children, complaining that aid funding is not enough to rehouse his family. — AFP
> This story is part of The 89 Percent Project, an initiative of the global journalism collaboration Covering Climate Now.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
a day ago
- The Sun
Saudi readies for ‘worst case scenario' in sweltering hajj
MINA: Near a sprawling tent city outside Mecca, Saudi hospital staff are preparing for a flood of heat-related cases as Muslim pilgrims begin hajj this week in sweltering summer temperatures. The Mina Emergency Hospital is one of 15 such facilities operating just a few weeks a year around the annual pilgrimage to Islam's holiest sites, which in 2024 saw more than 1,300 people die in the desert heat. Saudi authorities hope to head off a fatal repeat of last year's pilgrimage, when temperatures reached 51.8 degrees Celsius (125 Fahrenheit). Temperatures this year are forecast to exceed 40 degrees Celsius as one of the world's largest annual religious gatherings, bringing together devotees from around the globe, officially commences on Wednesday. So far, authorities have recorded 44 cases of heat exhaustion. Abdullah Asiri, Saudi Arabia's deputy minister for population health, told AFP at the Mina hospital that 'the focus is on heat-related conditions because the hajj coincides with extreme heat'. Brimming with staff but no patients just yet, the hospital is part of the kingdom's efforts to prepare for 'the worst case scenario' after pilgrims descend on Mina, Asiri said. Defying the scorching heat, pilgrims have already started to flock to Mecca. As of Sunday, more than 1.4 million pilgrims had arrived in Saudi Arabia for the multi-day pilgrimage, according to officials. Mecca's Grand Mosque is serviced by the largest cooling system in the world, according to Saudi state television, with enormous fans and cooled pavements dotting the massive complex. But outside, hiding from the heat can prove challenging. - Increased capacity - Some pilgrims wear caps or carry umbrellas, but others walk on foot without any protection from the sun, like Palestinian Rabah Mansour, 70, who said that after a lifetime of working outside as a farmer, 'heat doesn't bother me'. 'I have been working in the fields since I was a child,' he said, as sweat trickled down his face. While many pilgrims may be overcome with religious fervour, Asiri warned devotees against unnecessarily exposing themselves to harsh conditions. Badr Shreiteh, another Palestinian pilgrim, told AFP that he believed such hardships on the hajj trail would increase the blessings he reaps. 'As you can see, we're dripping with sweat,' he said, adding: 'The more hardship we endure, the more reward we gain.' According to Asiri, of the health ministry, a total of 50,000 healthcare workers and administrative staff have been mobilised for the hajj, far exceeding previous years' numbers. More than 700 hospital beds are ready, equipped with fans to treat severe cases of heat illnesses. 'Capacity this year has been expanded by more than 60 percent compared to last year,' Asiri said, expecting greater numbers of patients. 'That's why we are doing all of these measures,' he said. Last year, medical staff treated 2,764 pilgrims for heat exhaustion and other heat-related conditions, according to the health ministry. - 'Challenge' - To prevent people from needing hospitalisation in the first place, 71 emergency medical points have been set up around Mecca's holy sites with a focus on 'treating patients on the ground before their case deteriorates', said Asiri. On the second day of hajj, pilgrims will head to Mount Arafat, climbing it and reciting prayers for the whole day. Asiri said pilgrims can stay in the shade. 'Most of the heat-related illnesses that happen in Arafat is because people think that they must be under the sun,' he said. 'You don't have to be outside your tent during Arafat. You don't have to climb the mountain,' he added, citing no religious obligation to do so, 'and it's very risky from a health point of view'. Hajj Minister Tawfiq al-Rabiah told AFP earlier that thousands of misting fans and more than 400 water cooling units have been deployed. Authorities built cooled walkways, including a newly completed four-kilometre (2.5-mile) pathway leading to Arafat. Last year's hajj deaths were a high-profile example of the havoc wrought by heat in 2024, which the Copernicus Climate Change Service said was the hottest ever recorded. Abdul Majid Ati, from the Philippines, said there 'extreme heat, but there are also times that we are inside the (Grand mosque) -- it's extreme cold because of the tiles and of the aircon'. 'We take this as a challenge and a test of our moral character.'
The Sun
a day ago
- The Sun
Nigeria flooding death toll jumps past 200
ABUJA: Flash flooding in north-central Nigeria last week killed more than 200 people, the Niger state humanitarian commissioner said Tuesday, while hundreds more remain missing and are feared dead. The town of Mokwa was hit with the worst flash flood in living memory Thursday from overnight rains, with more than 250 homes destroyed and swathes of the town wiped out in a single morning. The announcement comes after several days of the official toll standing at around 150, even as residents were sometimes missing more than a dozen members in a single family. 'We have more than 200... corpses,' Ahmad Suleiman told Nigerian broadcaster Channels Television, adding: 'Nobody can tell you the number of casualties in Niger state right now because up till now, we are still looking for some corpses.' 'We're still looking for more,' he added. But, he said, 'sincerely speaking, we cannot ascertain.' Given the number of people still missing nearly a week later, the toll from a single morning of flooding in Mokwa could be worse than all of 2024 combined, which saw 321 deaths from flooding across the country. Climate change has made weather swings in Nigeria more extreme, but residents in Mokwa said human factors were also at play. Water had been building up for days behind an abandoned railway track that runs along the edge of the town, residents told AFP. Floodwaters would usually pass through a couple of culverts in the mounds and run into a narrow channel. But debris had blocked the culverts, forcing water to build up behind the clay walls that eventually gave way. Floods in Nigeria are often exacerbated by inadequate drainage, the construction of homes on waterways and the dumping of waste in drains and water channels. Volunteers and disaster response teams have recovered bodies nearly 10 kilometres (six miles) away after they were swept into the Niger River. Days before the disaster struck Mokwa, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency had warned of possible flash floods in 15 of Nigeria's 36 states, including Niger state, between Wednesday and Friday. When AFP reporters visited the town earlier this week, a powerful stench filled the air, which residents said came from decaying corpses trapped under the rubble. The government said it has delivered aid, but locals have criticised what they say is a lacklustre response, with multiple families telling AFP they hadn't received anything.
The Sun
2 days ago
- The Sun
Nigeria flood victims mourn missing bodies as death toll stagnates
MOKWA: On a hot and humid afternoon in Mokwa, Nigeria, Fatima and Habiba Jibrin sat under a mango tree, waiting for the recovery of corpses they fear may never come. Both women, married to the same man, had been spending their nights there since last week when the worst flood in living memory wiped out swathes of the town -- sweeping away their home, two other wives of their husband, and 16 children. Fatima, 26, lost four children, while Habiba, 27, lost six. But of the 18 people believed to have died in the family, only four bodies have been recovered. Their story -- of nearly an entire family wiped out in a single morning -- is common across Mokwa, in north-central Niger state, where the official death toll stubbornly sits around 150 but hundreds more are feared dead -- possibly more than the nationwide toll for all of 2024. 'We've been sleeping outside under the mango tree with mat and mosquito net,' Fatima told AFP. 'Even food to eat, we don't have any.' The government's presence being sparse, they depend 'solely' on fortunate residents whose properties were spared. Their husband, an Islamic school teacher, has been going out daily since the muddy waters flattened more than 250 houses in the community Thursday, searching for the remaining 14 bodies. Prospects grow bleaker by the hour. Hoping for more bodies No fewer than 15 electricity poles were destroyed, plunging the town into darkness. The sweltering weather offers no respite. Water is in short supply, and there are fears that cholera -- a major risk after floods -- may worsen the already dire situation in the weeks to come. Volunteers and disaster response teams have recovered bodies nearly 10 kilometres away after they were swept into the Niger River. Residents told AFP on Monday some bodies were recovered in a village in neighbouring Kwara State, on the opposite side of the powerful waterway's banks. Still, Fatima and Habiba are holding out hope for their husband's daily return, even if it's with bad news. 'We will be glad if he could recover their dead bodies so we can bury them,' Fatima Jibrin said. Like the two women, Fatima Muhammed is also hoping the body of her grandson will be found, dead or alive. She was preparing breakfast Thursday morning when she saw water flowing through a narrow channel in front of her house. She was unaware that water, which had been building up for days behind an abandoned railway track along the edge of the community, had just ruptured the clay walls. In less than a minute, the gentle flow turned into a powerful torrent. She escaped through the back door, she told AFP, but 'my grandson was swept away while trying to follow me.' She has been living with her daughter and considers herself an inconvenience. But as of Monday, there was still no help in sight. Government aid lacking, residents say Many residents in the Muslim-majority community are angry that the government has not been more helpful, with only days left before the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha. The state deputy governor visited Friday and made promises, and the government says it has delivered aid. But many residents said they have seen nothing. Amid simmering tensions, a couple of young men threatened to beat an AFP journalist, mistaking him for a government official. An attempt to distribute some relief materials ended abruptly earlier in the day after residents -- skeptical the event might be a staged photo op -- insisted the items be distributed openly. The wife of the governor, Fatima Mohammed Bago, made a short visit to the affected area on Monday afternoon. No emergency officials were present at the site until just minutes before her visit. They left immediately after. Fatima and Habiba Jibrin, along with Fatima Muhammed, said she never came to them, and they have not received any help from the government. 'There is nothing I can do,' said 36-year-old commercial driver Mohammed Aliu, whose children, wife and home were washed away by the floods. 'But I will be happy if I can see their corpses.'
