Cyclone in Southern Brazil Kills At Least 36

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Facts

  • An extratropical cyclone that hit southern Brazil on Monday night has killed at least 36 people in the southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, Governor Eduardo Leite said Wednesday, adding that this was the deadliest weather disaster to ever hit the state.1
  • The neighboring state of Santa Catarina registered one such fatality after a falling tree struck a man's vehicle during a windstorm with speeds of up to 110 kph (68 mph) in the western city of Jupiá.2
  • The death toll is expected to increase as authorities reported to local media that people are still missing after several towns were devastated as more than 300mm (11 inches) of rain fell in Rio Grande do Sul in less than 24 hours.3
  • Damage from the tornado-spawning storm, which brought floods and strong winds to both states, was reported in more than 60 municipalities across Rio Grande do Sul, where another cyclone killed at least 11 people in June.4
  • More than 52K residents have been affected, with more than 5.3K forced from their homes. Some residents have been stranded on rooftops and are still awaiting rescue, as many areas are cut off by flooded roadways. The situation could grow increasingly worse, with additional rainfall being forecast for Thursday.5
  • This week's flooding is the latest in a string of disasters to strike Brazil, where more than 50 people were killed in São Paulo earlier this year after heavy rains caused landslides and flooding.6

Sources: 1Cbc, 2Agência brasil, 3BBC News, 4New York Times, 5France 24 and 6Reuters.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by The conversation. Increasingly severe rainstorms and flooding are linked to global warming and climate change. Warmer weather allows air to retain more water vapor, which is why we must implement policies to cool the global temperature to save lives and billions of dollars in damage.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Ft. It's easy to dismiss any extreme weather event as a consequence of climate change, but in reality they're usually influenced by a myriad of factors. More research is needed before we can establish any direct causal link between the two.

Predictions