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2022 Petrópolis floods

On 15 February 2022, intense rainfall in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil caused mudslides and flooding that destroyed parts of the city. At least 231 people died in the disaster.[1][2]

2022 Petrópolis floods
Aerial view of Petrópolis, Brazil after the floods ravaged the city
DateFebruary 15, 2022
LocationPetrópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Deaths231
Missing5
Property damage1 billion R$ ($193.8 million USD)

Background

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Petrópolis is a popular tourist city in Brazil, and as it expanded, its poorer residents built upon the nearby mountainsides. This led to deforestation and poor drainage in these areas of the city.[3] From 2007 to 2010 geologists carried out a number of reports and landslide risk map for the Quitandinha district, and found the most vulnerable areas of the municipality. These findings should have been disseminated throughout Petropolis but, due to insufficient funding, this did not happen. Additionally, the local authorities of Petrópolis ordered a survey in 2017 and identified 15,240 houses with a high risk of being destroyed due to heavy rainfalls, which covered about 18% of the city. The city, however, was unable to act on this report.[3][4]

The National Natural Disaster Alert Monitoring Center (Cemaden) issued an alert on the magnitude of the storm two days before the floods on 15 February. According to specialists, the warning should have prompted the authorities to mobilize to evacuate the residents.[5] Despite the intensity of the tragedy that would be drawn a few hours later, this alert was issued in a classification of "moderate risk of landslides".[6]

Event

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An example of the mudslides as viewed on 18 February
 
First responders in a rescue operation

On February 15, 2022, the city of Petrópolis received an unusually high amount of rain within three hours, 258 millimetres (10.2 in). This was more than the prior 30 days combined, and the worst the city had seen since 1932.[3][7] According to Cemaden, of the rain recorded during that day, 250 mm (9.8 in) was recorded between 4:20pm and 7:20pm. The climatological normal for the month of February was 185 millimetres (7.3 in). It was the biggest storm in the history of Petrópolis, since measurements began in 1932. The previous record had occurred on August 20, 1952, when it rained 168.2 mm (6.62 in) in 24 hours.[8]

The high level of precipitation caused flooding within the city as well as destabilized the mountainside, causing mudslides.[3] Videos of the disaster were widely shared on social media, showing cars and houses being dragged by landslides.[9][10] By February 21, the death toll reached 176,[11] including at least 27 children and teenagers.[12] As of February 28, the death toll has risen to 231, with 5 people still missing.[1][2] This event is the deadliest flood and mudslide in Petrópolis' history, exceeding the 1988 event which left 171 dead.[13]

Impacts

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The damages from the floods and mudslides exceeded 1 billion Brazilian reals when considering reconstruction costs.[14] The estimated loss is 665 million reals from the municipality's gross domestic product (GDP), equivalent to 2%, in data that considers only the direct impact. On top of that, over 78 million reals worth of goods were damaged.[15]

Reactions

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Brazil

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Federal Government

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President Jair Bolsonaro, who was visiting Russia and Hungary, contacted the Minister of Regional Development and the Minister of Economy to help the victims, as well as talking to the governor of the state of Rio. According to his son, Flávio Bolsonaro, and later confirmed on his own social networks. Bolsonaro visited Petrópolis on 18 February.[16] The federal government also announced a minimum contribution of R$2.3 million for the city.[17] The Caixa Econômica Federal announced that it had opened a fund for the city.

Caixa Econômica Federal said it had opened a branch on an emergency basis to assist victims in Petrópolis who need to withdraw their FGTS (Severance Indemnity Fund) funds.[18]

The Ministry of Health said that it had sent teams from the Unified Health System (SUS) to the region. It also donated 500kg of medicines  for post-disaster care. In all, 32 types of medicine and medicines and 16 supplies were sent to Petrópolis. These medicines were used to prevent the proliferation of worms and viruses that are common after floods. It has also been estimated that 13 Basic Health Units (UBS), one Emergency Care Unit (UPA) and two other health services were damaged by the disaster.[19]

Brazilian States

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  •   Rio de Janeiro: The governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Castro, announced on his social networks that he had mobilized more firefighters and ambulances. The governor also went to the most affected region of Petrópolis together with the Civil Defense and the president of the Legislative Assembly of Rio de Janeiro, André Ceciliano, to analyze how to proceed after the disaster.[20] The city hall of Petrópolis declared three days of mourning.[21]
  •   São Paulo: Through the command of its governor João Dória, the government of São Paulo sent a team of four firefighters and two sniffer dogs, following a request made by the governor of Rio de Janeiro Cláudio Castro. In addition to the firefighters with rescue dogs, the São Paulo state government also made available the São Paulo State Military Police's Águia helicopters.[22][23]
  •   Rio Grande do Sul: The governor of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite, had already made the Civil Defence and Fire Brigade available for the search in Petrópolis as soon as the catastrophe in the city was announced. Due to the complex logistics of getting to the region, the firefighters only arrived in the city on 20 February.[24][25] The soldiers from Rio Grande do Sul were responsible for finding another family of gauchos who were buried under the rubble. The family had been missing after a house in the region collapsed and with the help of the rescue dogs of the Military Fire Brigade they were located, but unfortunately they were already lifeless.[26]
Brazilian Imperial Family
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The laudêmio issue refers to the tax paid by the population of Petrópolis to the heirs of Emperor Pedro II, which is collected by Companhia Imobiliária de Petrópolis, administered by ten heirs of the House of Orléans-Braganza, of the former Brazilian Imperial Family.[27]

Prince Bertrand Orléans-Braganza, a pretender to the imperial throne Brazil and Head of the Imperial Family, lamented the heavy rains that hit the city and denied on Twitter that his dynastic branch of family, known as the Vassouras Branch, receives funds from the laudêmio.[28] The special tax is fact received by those of the Petrópolis Branch, a fact that sparked criticism among the inhabitants of the city.

In 2022 number of bills were tabled before the Chamber of Deputies proposing the extinction of laudêmio in the municipality of Petrópolis.[29][30] However as of 2023 this tax was still in force.[31]

Foreign Countries

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b de Moura, Felipe (2022-02-28). "Petrópolis: Tragédia já tem 231 mortos; 5 ainda estão desaparecidos" [Petrópolis: Tragedy already has 231 dead; 5 are still missing]. Band Rio (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-28. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  2. ^ a b "Brazil: Death toll from rains in Petrópolis rises to 231". The Rio Times. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d "Survivors dig for loved ones as Brazil flood death toll reaches 105". The Guardian. Associated Press. February 17, 2022. Archived from the original on February 17, 2022. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  4. ^ Berta, Ruben (2022-02-17). "Petrópolis sabia de 15 mil imóveis em risco na área da tragédia desde 2017" [Petrópolis knew since 2017 that fifteen thousand properties in the area were at risk]. noticias.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-17. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  5. ^ Moreira, Matheus (2022-02-16). "Petrópolis deveria ter sido evacuada após alerta há 2 dias, diz especialista". Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  6. ^ "Risk in Petrópolis went from moderate to very high in less than two hours; see chronology of the tragedy". Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2022-02-19. Archived from the original on 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  7. ^ Rodrigues, Diarlei; Biller, David (2022-02-16). "Death toll rises to 78 from mudslides after storm in Brazil". AP NEWS. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2022-02-20. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  8. ^ Marcella Duarte (2022-02-17). UOL (ed.). "Petrópolis teve chuva de um mês em poucas horas; veja como medição funciona". Archived from the original on 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  9. ^ Real, Nayani (2022-02-16). "#Hashtag: Chuva em Petrópolis é associada à crise climática nas redes" [#Hashtag: Rains in Petrópolis is associated to the crisis climate in social media]. Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  10. ^ Carvalho, Bruna; Couto, Camille (2022-02-16). "Desastre provocado pelas fortes chuvas deixa 104 mortos em Petrópolis (RJ)" [Disaster caused by heavy rains leaves 94 dead in Petrópolis (RJ)]. CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-17.
  11. ^ Gaier, Rodrigo Viga (21 February 2022). "Death toll in Brazil's Petropolis mudslides, floods hits 176; more than 110 missing". Reuters. Archived from the original on 21 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Petrópolis: More than 120 still missing in Brazil flood-hit city". bbc.com. BBC. 2022-02-21. Archived from the original on 2022-02-21. Retrieved 2022-02-21.
  13. ^ "Com 178 mortos, tragédia em Petrópolis é a maior já registrada na história do município". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 21 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-02-27. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  14. ^ "Petrópolis perdeu pelo menos R$ 665 milhões no PIB com tragédia, diz Firjan". CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  15. ^ "Comércio de Petrópolis tem prejuízo de mais de R$ 78 mi, mostra Fecomércio". economia.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  16. ^ "Petrópolis: Presidente irá à cidade na sexta, diz Flávio Bolsonaro [16/02/2022]". noticias.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  17. ^ "Após chuvas, governo federal libera repasse de R$ 2,3 mi para Petrópolis [17/02/2022]". noticias.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  18. ^ Dia, O. (2022-02-17). "Caixa libera saque do FGTS e aprova pausa no financiamento imobiliário aos moradores de Petrópolis | Economia". O Dia (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  19. ^ Cardim', 'Maria Eduarda (17 February 2022). "Queiroga viaja a Petrópolis e calcula danos em 13 unidades básicas de Saúde". Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  20. ^ "Chuvas em Petrópolis: governador Cláudio Castro chega na cidade". Diário de Petrópolis (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  21. ^ Gaier, Rodrigo Viga (2022-02-16). "Heavy rains, flooding kill dozens in Brazil's 'Imperial City'". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  22. ^ "SP envia a Petrópolis equipe com 4 bombeiros e dois cães farejadores para trabalhar no resgate de vítimas". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  23. ^ PODER360 (2022-02-18). "Governo de SP envia cães farejadores a Petrópolis". Poder360 (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  24. ^ "RS envia bombeiros, cães e viaturas para auxiliar nas buscas em Petrópolis". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  25. ^ "Eduardo Leite envia bombeiros e cães farejadores para auxiliar buscas em Petrópolis". Bahia.Ba (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  26. ^ TI (2022-02-21). "Petrópolis: bombeiros e cães gaúchos localizaram sete corpos até a manhã desta segunda". GAZ - Notícias de Santa Cruz do Sul e Região (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  27. ^ "'Príncipe' lamenta tragédia em Petrópolis e recebe críticas por laudêmio [18/02/2022]". noticias.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  28. ^ Redação (2022-02-19). "Dom Bertrand de Orleans não está no ramo que recebe o laudêmio". Aventuras na História (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  29. ^ Brasília, O. TEMPO (2022-02-19). "Deputados propõem acabar com laudêmio, o imposto do príncipe | O TEMPO". www.otempo.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  30. ^ "Com 'taxa do príncipe', Petrópolis privilegia regime extinto há tempos". noticias.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  31. ^ "Imposto arcaico obriga brasileiros a sustentar a família real portuguesa". O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2023-10-16. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  32. ^ "Papa Francisco pede orações pelas vítimas da tragédia de Petrópolis". Exame (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2022-02-20. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  33. ^ "Rainha Elizabeth II manda mensagem ao Brasil por tragédia em Petrópolis". CNN Brasil. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
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