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A Brazilian state is under water. This has no political consequences, says journalist Anne Herrberg.
The south of Brazil has been hit by heavy rains for weeks. In April, record floods killed more than 160 people, and around 600,000 people lost their homes and are living in emergency shelters. ARD journalist Anne Herrberg reports on the current situation.
SRF News: Is an end to this extreme rainy period in sight?
Anne Herrberg: The situation in Rio Grande do Sul is still very tense. Large parts of the state are still under water, and parts of the capital Porto Alegre are also under water. The temperatures have also dropped significantly. Almost 600,000 people are still waiting in emergency shelters.
This climate catastrophe has also hit the poorer sections of the population particularly hard.
It is an area almost as big as Italy. The extent of the destruction is compared to that of Hurricane Katrina. What are the consequences?
Many roads have been destroyed. Work is underway to restore transport routes, as they are also needed for aid deliveries. But the airport in Porto Alegre, for example, will probably not be operational until September. We still have many neighborhoods that have been completely destroyed.
Legend:
Neighborhoods of the capital Porto Alegre were under water. Picture from May 24, 2024.
Reuters/Diego Vara
The full extent of the damage is only gradually becoming clear because there was no access to remote places. Many wooden houses were completely destroyed, and these were the homes of the poorer people. This means that this climate catastrophe has hit the poorer sections of the population harder.
In addition, we have seen a major impact on agriculture and rice cultivation. There have been severe landslides within the state, which have affected many wine growers, for example.
This was the fourth flood within a year. Are there reasons for this frequency?
This year we have had extreme weather throughout Brazil with the El Niño climate phenomenon. That means an extreme drought in the Amazon and extreme temperatures in Rio de Janeiro that felt like over 60 degrees. And now we have this extreme rainfall combined with winds in the south of Brazil. All the climate experts I have spoken to say that it is due to climate change that such climate phenomena are becoming more intense.
Climate experts assume that there is a connection with deforestation.
On the other hand, there is also criticism: it is not just the climate, it is also the lack of preparation. There is also general criticism: while this flood is taking place here, laws are being passed in Congress that are driving further deforestation. Climate experts assume that there is a connection with the deforestation.
There are clear calls to finally rethink things, because this will be the new normal.
Flood protection was neglected. Do these floods now have political consequences?
Many people hope so. On the other hand, as mentioned, even during this disaster, Congress passed laws that weakened environmental protection. There are clear calls to finally rethink things, because this will be the new normal. Regarding flood protection: Some of the locks in the city were simply broken. Infiltration areas were built up for economic reasons.
There are now initiatives to urgently introduce a bill in Congress that would recognize victims of climate disasters as such and provide them with rapid assistance. However, there is no information about what exactly they want to do.
The interview was conducted by Radka Laubacher.