Search teams in southeastern Brazil rescued a girl buried for more than 16 hours in the rubble of a collapsed house following a powerful storm that has claimed at least a dozen lives.
Authorities have deployed teams to the mountainous areas of Rio de Janeiro state, describing the situation caused by the deluge there as “critical”.
Four of the deaths in Rio state occurred when the storm caused a house to collapse in the city of Petropolis, 70 kilometers (45 miles) inland from the capital.
The girl’s father, who was found dead next to her on Saturday morning, had “heroically protected the girl with his body,” a neighbor told AFP.
“We are in pain, but grateful for this miracle,” said Luis Claudio de Souza, 63.
The deluge came as Brazil, South America’s largest country, suffers through a recent string of extreme weather events, which experts say are more likely to occur due to climate change.
At least eight people have been killed in the state of Rio de Janeiro, officials said, while the neighboring state of Espirito Santo has confirmed at least four dead and seven missing.
Such environmental tragedies “are intensifying with climate change,” President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, adding that thousands had been left homeless by the storm.
He expressed sympathy for the victims, and said his government was working with state and local authorities to “protect, prevent and repair flood damage.”
Espirito Santo’s governor Renato Casagrande said the situation in the town of Mimoso do Sul was “chaotic,” with the number of fatalities there yet to be determined.
And in Sao Paolo state, two children were hospitalized for injuries sustained during the storm on Friday.
Rio Governor Claudio Castro on Friday said the situation in Petropolis was “critical” due to “intense rains and the overflowing of the Quitandinha River.”
