Brazil’s first responders cling to hope as deadly floods and landslides bury towns

Raphael Brito just hoped the rain would stop.

The captain of the Sao Paulo Fire Department has spent the last three days with his colleagues searching for flood victims in southeastern Brazil, where landslides have buried homes and cut highways.

But persistent rain, he said, hampered efforts, and people grew desperate.

“This is the worst scenario I’ve ever seen in my career,” Capt. Brito said. As it happens host Nil Köksal from the rescue command center in Sao Sebastiao, one of the worst hit towns.

The city of 91,000 has suffered, with 45 of the 46 deaths recorded so far.

“Houses have been destroyed. The highway has been completely destroyed. Many people have left their homes. Water and electricity supplies have been lost. And many people are missing,” said Brito. “So really, really sad right now.”

Heavy rain over the weekend caused landslides and flooding in coastal towns in the southeast of the country. Almost 2,500 people are still displaced or homeless, the Sao Paulo state government said in a statement.

The flooding also coincided with the annual Carnival holiday, which brings many tourists to the country’s beaches.

Brito said that, as of Tuesday, first responders were aware of 36 people still missing.

The team, he said, used pre-flood photos of the area to determine where houses once stood, then searched the mud and rubble for survivors.

“It’s been about three days, and we’re talking to his relatives and we’re trying to give him hope,” he said. “We really want to find him alive, even if it’s difficult – but we’re going [up] our work.”

With washed-out roads and heavy rains in the mud and debris, rescue operations were slow.

Since the weekend, the region has been hit with more than 600 millimeters of rain, which the government says is the highest cumulative figure in Brazil.

And it doesn’t look like it’s letting up anytime soon. The government of Sao Sebastiao said that by Friday, another 200 millimeters would hit the region, meaning more floods and landslides.

Brito said first responders are focused on finding missing people and sending aid via helicopter to the thousands stranded in shelters set up in schools and gymnasiums.

The flooding in the coastal state of Sao Paulo is the latest in a series of disasters to hit Brazil recently, where poor construction, often on hillsides, can have tragic consequences during the country’s rainy season.

More than 200 people were killed by landslides and floods in the city of Petropolis near Rio de Janeiro about a year ago, followed by major floods in the states of Santa Catarina and Bahia in December 2022.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva flew over Sao Sebastiao along with cabinet ministers on Monday, pledging to rebuild the city by building new homes in safer places.

Sao Paulo state governor Tarcísio de Freitas said the navy would build a field hospital for victims starting Thursday.

“There are up to 300 beds in the infirmary, with orthopedic, clinical, trauma and psychiatric professionals,” said Freitas.

Brito said rescuers are doing their best to stay focused and not lose hope.

He said there were moments in the last three days that gave him the fuel to do it – like when he successfully rescued a woman and her newborn baby by helicopter during a midday flood.

“It’s really nice[ing] when we can … rescue people alive,” he said.

“We’re trying to do the best we can, but we’re hoping for luck and … good weather, and that things will get better.”