Water covers the streets during flooding in Canoas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 6, 2024.
A stop sign and the top of a house are seen underwater on a flooded street in Canoas, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 5, 2024.
People are rescued during flooding in Canoas, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 5, 2024. Volunteers used their own boats to save hundreds of people trapped by flooding in cities such as Canoas and nearby areas. Entire neighborhoods were submerged, forcing residents to wait for help. Emergency crews worked tirelessly, navigating strong currents to evacuate families and pets to safety. For many, these rescues were a lifeline, as roads were impassable and access to essential items was cut off. The efforts highlighted the resilience of local communities and first responders amid the flooding.
A man is carried after getting off a boat while being rescued during flooding in Canoas, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 5, 2024. The rescues highlighted the immense challenges faced by communities and underscored the importance of preparedness to protect at-risk populations during extreme weather events.
João Engelmann, a 54-year-old farmer, opens a washing machine filled with muddy water after flooding in the Integração Gaúcha settlement in Eldorado do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, May 10, 2024. After three days of heavy rain, Engelmann and his wife fled their flooded home. Nearby, the waters rose above his head and, in one day, were hitting the roofs of houses. João Engelmann and his wife, Edite de Almeida, chose to stay and rebuild their home. “We came from nothing. We’re back to nothing. Now we’re going to start over.” Local economies also suffered, with businesses destroyed and agricultural areas submerged, further exacerbating the crisis.
Janine de Almeida Engelmann, an 18-year-old student and daughter of Edite and João, watches cartoons on a phone with Lívia, who was also displaced by the recent floods, in a warehouse at a truck body factory after Engelmann and her family left their home during the floods in Eldorado do Sul, May 16, 2024. Flooded farms and roads around the state capital, Porto Alegre, contributed to food and water shortages in the region, exacerbating the crisis and disrupting the lives of more than 2 million people.
Edite de Almeida, 51, farmer and wife of João Engelmann, enters her home for the first time after the floods, where water and mud marks can be seen on the walls following flooding in the Integração Gaúcha settlement in Eldorado do Sul on May 17, 2024. When the floodwaters began to recede, Almeida had her first glimpse of her devastated home, with stained walls, destroyed appliances, and belongings covered in mud. Almeida, Engelmann, and their daughter slept in a truck bed in a neighbor’s warehouse, improvising a domestic routine while rebuilding their lives. It was the first time Edite and João had returned to see the damage to their home. They found mud and water everywhere, even inside a washing machine. “I am grateful that we survived, and I am sorry for those who lost family members,” she said. “We came from nothing. We are back to nothing. Now we will start over.”
Edite de Almeida, 51, adjusts the collar of her husband João Engelmann’s shirt, 54, in a warehouse at a truck body factory where they have been staying since fleeing the floods in Eldorado do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, on May 14, 2024. After three days of heavy rain, Edite, her husband João Engelmann, and their daughter Janine fled their flooded home. Nearby, the waters rose above their heads and, in one day, were hitting the roofs of houses. “We came from nothing. We went back to nothing. Now we’re going to start over,” said Edite. I’m not mourning. I am grateful because there are many who have lost much more than we have,“ said Almeida. ”I am grateful that we survived, and I am sorry for those who lost family members.”
Fernando Wommer, 20, stands on the rubble of a relative’s house destroyed by flooding from the Taquari River in Arroio do Meio, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, on May 20, 2024. His house and all of his family’s houses, which were next to each other, were destroyed. He and his family lost everything they had. They gave up looking for their belongings. “There’s nothing left.”
Cintia Santos cries as she and her family are evacuated by bus from a flooded area in Eldorado do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, on May 7, 2024. Global climate change is expected to render certain areas uninhabitable and drive the migration of hundreds of millions or billions of people by 2050 as they flee rising sea levels, drought, flooding, and other disasters.
Record flooding in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul caused devastation and affected the local population, displacing more than 600,000 people. Families lost their homes, their possessions, and their livelihoods. According to state authorities, 183 people lost their lives. In total, 2.39 million residents were affected by the floods, which caused significant human and economic losses. The government described the event as the worst climate disaster in the state’s history.
Climate change has doubled the likelihood of flooding, according to a team of international scientists, who added that the heavy rains were also intensified by the natural phenomenon El Niño. Even in the current climate, according to experts from the World Weather Attribution group, the heavy rains were an “extremely rare” event, which should only occur once every 100 to 250 years. But it would have been even rarer without the effects of burning fossil fuels, the group said. Critical infrastructure failure, deforestation, and rapid urbanization contributed to amplifying the effects of the disaster, the scientists added.
Global climate change is expected to render certain areas uninhabitable and cause the migration of hundreds of millions or billions of people by 2050, who will flee rising sea levels, drought, flooding, and other disasters.
Rio Grande do Sul has already suffered several floods in the past, but none comparable to this one. In the streets, residents reflected on the water levels during the last two floods.
About 6,500 family farms were flooded by torrential rains, according to satellite data analysis by consulting firm Terra Analytics. Among them were Edite de Almeida and her husband, João Engelmann.
“We came from nothing. We went back to nothing. Now we’re going to start over,” says Edite de Almeida.
