Scores killed in Brazil flooding

At least 257 people reported dead after floods and landslides devastate towns in southeast of the country. Last Modified: 13 Jan 2011 01:07 GMT

Rains sweeping through Sao Paulo state killed 13 people and snarled transport in the country's financial capital [EPA] Floods and landslides have devastated towns in a mountainous area near Rio de Janeiro, killing at least 257 people, according to local media. The town of Teresopolis, about 100km north of Rio, was worst hit, with at least 122 people killed, officials said on Wednesday, after hillsides and riverbanks buckled under the equivalent of a month's rainfall in 24 hours. Two other towns in the region were also hit as the downpour sent water and mud surging through their communities. The overall death toll is expected to rise, with about 50 people believed in Teresopolis alone, Jorge Mario, the city's mayor, told Globo television. "Rescue teams are still arriving in the areas that have been worst affected," he said, adding that about 1,000 people had been left homeless. "It's the biggest catastrophe in the history of the town." 'Many disappeared' Survivors waded through waist-high water, carrying what belongings they could, trying to reach higher ground. Many tried desperately to find relatives. "There are so many disappeared - and so many that will probably never be found," Angela Marina de Carvalho Silva, who believes she may have lost 15 relatives to the flood, told The Assciated Press news agency. "There was nothing we could do. It was hell." The downpour caused at least one river to burst its banks, submerging cars and destroying houses in Teresopolis. "I saw six bodies on my street," Antonio Venancio, a 53-year-old Teresopolis resident whose house was inundated with mud but remained standing, told the Reuters news agency by telephone. "We just don't know what to do in the face of something so horrible." Images taken from helicopters showed torrents of water cascading down mountains over thes town of 180,000 people, and houses swamped in tons of mud. Thousands of people in the picturesque area, known as the Serrana region, have been isolated by the flood waters and cut off from power and telephone contact. Buses and trucks were shown stranded on streets with flood waters reaching up to their windows. Rescue efforts Sergio Cabral, the Rio state governor, said in a statement that he had asked the navy for aircraft to take rescue crews and equipment to the region, which was partially cut off from Rio by road. "There are already about 800 rescure crews already there and they are going to be working through the night to try and rescue anyone who might be trapped under the mud," Al Jazeera's Gabriel elizondo, reporting from Rio de Janeiro state, said. "Accessing that area is difficult and that is why the governor has set aside as many helicopters as he can get his hands on." In the town of Nova Friburgo, where more than 100 people were feared dead, four fireman were missing after being buried by a mudslide while they tried to rescue victims, according to fire officials. On Tuesday, rains sweeping through Sao Paulo state killed 13 people and snarled transport in the country's financial capital. Dilma Rousseff, Brazil's president, signed a measure on Wednesday sending $461 million to towns in Rio and Sao Paulo states that were damaged during the rains. The money will go to repairing infrastructure and preventing future disasters. Heavy rains common during Brazil's summer wet season were intensified this week by a cold front which doubled the usual precipitation.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies