14 DAY TRIAL // Days of torrential rain have turned a significant part of Brazilian soil into a swamp and prompted massive floods and landslides in several areas of the country. From preliminary estimates, authorities reported 59 dead and nearly 44,000 uprooted by the massive weather anomaly, which struck the state of Santa Caterina the hardest. The federal government announced its preparedness, readying tonnes of food and water, in help to the relief effort.
Santa Caterina already declared a state of emergency, and rescue workers are piloting motor boats and helicopters to inaccessible areas, in an attempt to minimize the death toll by as much as possible. Missing person reports are growing in numbers by the minute, and authorities want to prevent as many deaths as possible. "Santa Catarina is facing its worst weather tragedy," Governor Luis Henrique Silveira announced recently.
According to his estimates, some 1.5 million people were affected by both landslides and floods, with some 8 towns out of the state's 60 completely isolated by water. Electricity failed yesterday for about 150,000 people, and access to most areas is extremely difficult. The Governor says that it's highly unlikely that state resources alone would mean anything in front of the massive devastation that occurred.
The main priority for Brazilian officials is now to supply medical posts with sufficient drugs and personnel to successfully handle the ever-increasing rush of wounded people coming in. Roads are completely submerged, and keeping a specific direction over the spreads of water is a matter of intuition. Further rains could increase the gravity of the situation exponentially, as already the nation's infrastructure in the region is hanging by a thread.
News casts transmitted horrifying images, of entire hillsides simply being dislodged and carried away by the rivers of mud, along with roads, whose earth foundations were destroyed by water infiltrations. Addressing the current situation is now the nation's most pressing concern, and authorities say that they will live up to the challenge.