Flooding and landslides triggered by torrential rain in Brazil claimed at least 36 lives over Carnival weekend in southeast São Paulo State, authorities said Sunday. In the town of São Sebastião, TV and social‑media footage showed entire neighborhoods submerged, hillside houses swept away by oozing earth, flooded highways, and cars destroyed by fallen trees. The state government reported that at least 35 people died in São Sebastião, and a girl was also killed in the nearby town of Ubatuba. “Unfortunately, we are going to have many more deaths,” state civil‑defense chief Henguel Pereira told the newspaper Folha de São Paulo.
Another 228 people were left homeless and 338 were evacuated in the coastal region north of the city of São Paulo, the government added, as rescue crews raced to assist those hit by the storm. Authorities did not provide figures for the missing or injured. São Paulo state governor Tarcísio de Freitas declared a state of emergency in five coastal towns after flying over the devastated areas, releasing the equivalent of $1.5 million for rescue operations. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced on Twitter that he will visit the area on Monday; he has been on holiday in the northeast state of Bahia since Friday.
São Sebastião, located 200 km (120 mi) north of São Paulo and a popular pre‑Lenten beach destination, was hard hit after a record 60 cm (nearly two feet) of rain fell in 24 hours—more than twice the normal monthly total, city officials said. Carnival events in São Sebastião and elsewhere were cancelled. “We have not yet gauged the scale of the damage. We are trying to rescue the victims,” Mayor Felipe Augusto told Globonews, describing the situation as “extremely critical.” He added that nearly 50 residences had collapsed under the force of the water and people were still buried.
More than 100 firefighters, aided by helicopters, were working at the scene, and soldiers joined the effort to help those affected by the downpour. Lula pledged that all levels of government would “take care of the injured, look for missing people and restore roads, energy and telecommunications.” Amid the loss and destruction, authorities rescued a two‑year‑old boy from a sea of mud and a woman who was giving birth.
Extreme weather events fueled by climate change are taking a heavy toll on Brazil; torrential rains last year in the city of Petrópolis caused more than 230 deaths.
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