Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva postponed a state visit to Chile on Monday, initially scheduled for May 17 and 18, due to unprecedented floods in southern Brazil which have left 147 dead according to the latest report.
The presidency invoked in a press release the “need to monitor the situation linked to flooding in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and to coordinate assistance to the affected population and reconstruction work.”
No new dates are planned for this trip at this time.
The torrential rains that have fallen since the beginning of the month in the state of Rio Grande do Sul have caused rivers to overflow, affecting more than two million people and leaving 147 dead and 806 injured, according to the latest report published Monday by the Civil defense.
Photo: Andre Penner Associated Press
The torrential rains that have fallen since the beginning of the month in the state of Rio Grande do Sul have caused rivers to overflow, as here in Porto Alegre.
Some 127 people are still missing, while more than 600,000 others have been forced to abandon their homes due to this disaster, which experts say is linked to climate change and the El Niño phenomenon.
Intense rains fell throughout the weekend in the region, once again swelling rivers and raising fears of additional damage.
“The situation will continue to get worse,” warned state governor Eduardo Leite on the social network
To watch on video