{"id":54116,"date":"2019-08-14T15:55:35","date_gmt":"2019-08-14T18:55:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/?p=54116"},"modified":"2019-11-13T15:34:01","modified_gmt":"2019-11-13T18:34:01","slug":"rios-rising-climate-vulnerability-a-decade-long-timeline-of-devastation-wrought-by-landslides-reference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=54116","title":{"rendered":"Rio\u2019s Rising Climate Vulnerability: A Decade-Long Timeline of Devastation Wrought by Landslides [REFERENCE]"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: right;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/36eqDIG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong><em>Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-23766\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/PT-e1439583827971.png\" \/><\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Landslides and flooding as a result of heavy rains are nothing new, especially for Rio de Janeiro. But over the past years, the situation has gotten <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2OYSYuD\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">visibly worse<\/a>. While increasing climate vulnerability is a global concern, coastal cities like Rio\u2014situated along the Atlantic Ocean with a terrain that is both mountainous and low-lying\u2014are <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2KOYrnu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">predicted to be particularly hard hit<\/a> by natural disasters.<\/p>\n<p><iframe style=\"width: 100%; height: 600px; border: 0px none;\" src=\"https:\/\/ourworldindata.org\/grapher\/number-of-natural-disaster-events?time=1909..2018&amp;country=Landslide\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Above is an <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XlLh8o\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">interactive graph<\/a> from <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Jskpvt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Our World In Data<\/em><\/a> showing globally reported landslides over the course of the past century. With some variability from year to year, the overall upward trend in landslide occurrences is clear. In tropical countries like Brazil, rapidly changing weather patterns will have an even more distinguishable effect.<\/p>\n<p>Brazil&#8217;s National Meteorology Institute (<a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2ZcYnmc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">INMET<\/a>) maintains an online database of information regarding Brazilian weather patterns over time, such as average temperature, average rainfall, and humidity, dating back to 1910. Though a search through their historical rainfall maps shows little variation in monthly rainfall levels, Rio&#8217;s location makes it more vulnerable to flooding and landslide events due to the different characteristics of the mountainous region and its reactions to weather patterns.<\/p>\n<p>In 2016 \u00c1lvaro \u00c1vila (et al.), in a paper on <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XZBKVt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">precipitation trends<\/a>, flash floods, and landslides in Brazil, showed that 49 landslides and 97 flash floods were reported in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region and 179 flash floods in the Santa Catarina region in southern Brazil from 1991-2012 alone.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Rio-and-Santa-Catarina-events.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-54923 size-content\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Rio-and-Santa-Catarina-events-620x264.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"264\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Rio-and-Santa-Catarina-events-620x264.jpg 620w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Rio-and-Santa-Catarina-events-940x400.jpg 940w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>In this graph, Rx1day is the annual total precipitation over one day, and Rx5day is the annual maximum consecutive 5-day precipitation recorded. The study used these, along with other characteristics such as the annual total rainfall on wet days and annual count of days when daily precipitation is greater than 30mm, to estimate the significance of the patterns of rainfall in the region.<\/p>\n<p>The graph shows a <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/32MFDvS\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Pearson correlation test<\/a>, which can test whether or not some given variables have an association with a certain outcome. A P-value of 0 means no association, while anything greater than 0 indicates a positive correlation, and anything over 0.1 is considered significant. In this case, variables are a place&#8217;s weather patterns and the outcomes are flash flooding and landslide events. For Rio de Janeiro, the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Y4lvH2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">P-value<\/a> between the precipitation indexes and landslides were 0.49 for Rx1day and 0.59 for Rx5day, and between the indices and flash flooding, 0.50 and 0.40, respectively (positive correlations in all cases).<\/p>\n<p>While there exist both social and technical <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Liy8Y8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">causes of landslides<\/a>, in Rio de Janeiro, these events naturally occur due to soil degradation caused by intense rains over a short period of time, and can even occur <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XH1C3C\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">days following precipitation<\/a>. As a result of a combination of <a href=\"https:\/\/go.nasa.gov\/2Sw6Pdz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">increasing global climate change<\/a>, a history of deforestation and <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2H2ku9k\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">urbanization<\/a>, and a general <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2N02EUB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">lack of political will to proactively tackle environmental challenges<\/a>, the city of Rio is experiencing a growing number of <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">natural disasters with drastic consequences<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Landslides and flooding events most frequently occur in Rio during the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XH1C3C\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">rainy season<\/a>, from December to April\u2014corresponding to summer and early autumn in the Southern Hemisphere, when temperatures are considerably higher than the rest of the year.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-54711 size-large\" title=\"Source: US Geological Survey, USA Today research\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide-1012x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"627\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide-1012x1024.jpg 1012w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide-297x300.jpg 297w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide-768x777.jpg 768w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Anatomy-of-a-Mudslide.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The city\u2019s favelas\u2014some of which are situated on <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/30fDeI9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">hillsides susceptible to landslide risk<\/a>, while others are located on <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WLrtvq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">low-lying land prone to flooding<\/a>\u2014are often among the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">areas hardest hit<\/a> by these events, exacerbated by the inadequate provision of public infrastructure such as <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2MwRBFI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">basic sanitation works<\/a> and investments in retaining walls. When these disasters occur, government officials such as Mayor <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XIipmY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Marcelo Crivella<\/a> and Governor <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Y57Azm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Wilson Witzel<\/a>\u00a0tend to <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2jEYWW5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">blame favelas<\/a>, while ignoring the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2H2ku9k\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">issue of historical and systematic government neglect<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Without proper investment in both disaster mitigation interventions and emergency response programs, many favelas will remain <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/30fDeI9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">vulnerable to the consequences of natural disasters<\/a>. Moreover, without acknowledging favelas as affordable housing solutions and instead treating even long-established favelas as problematic spaces to be eradicated, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2wI8YIQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">damaging stigmas against them<\/a> will only serve to <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2L2TXdj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">perpetuate harmful narratives<\/a>. These, in turn, will maintain them in a precarious state, leading to even more fatalities and further physical, economic, and environmental damage.<\/p>\n<p>Below is a timeline of major flooding and landslide events that have severely impacted favelas in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IqnU52\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Greater Rio<\/a>\u00a0over the last decade.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>April 2010<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>On April 5, 2010, several Rio weather stations recorded a record <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2ZAtckn\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">288mm of rain<\/a> within 24 hours, well over the average rainfall amount for the month of April (140mm). The amount of precipitation within this timeframe was the highest recorded in the previous 30 years. Globo television network put this amount of rainfall into context by <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2x95csk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">likening<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2x95csk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> it<\/a> to the amount of water needed to fill 300,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-54713 size-large\" title=\"Aerial view of Morro dos Prazeres after the landslides.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010-869x1024.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"731\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010-869x1024.png 869w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010-255x300.png 255w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010-768x905.png 768w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Landslide-Prazeres-2010.png 1040w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The torrential rains of 2010 prompted the City Council and Civil Defense to <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Ybytid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">add technological improvements<\/a> to the city&#8217;s landslide warning and risk mitigation systems in the wake of the havoc wreaked upon communities across Greater Rio.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2Y4etO7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Fifty-two people were killed<\/a> in the city of Rio de Janeiro (<a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2L2TXdj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">30<\/a> in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2N1ZGm3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Morro dos Prazeres<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2L2TXdj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">three<\/a> in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/317A4Hx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rocinha<\/a>, specifically the uppermost section, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XM1CPC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Laboriaux<\/a>, in the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/318kJ9H\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">South Zone<\/a>; and <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2ZAtckn\">five<\/a> in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/30q8Iv7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Morro dos Macacos<\/a>, in the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IgR5qe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">North Zone<\/a>), while the total death count in Rio state <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XOFAfv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">was well over 200<\/a>\u2014including severe devastation in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XTMGDx\">Niter\u00f3i<\/a>, where <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XMck90\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">99 people were killed<\/a> (<a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XTMGDx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">48<\/a>\u00a0in the community of <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XM25RS\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Morro do Bumba<\/a> alone). The death toll was higher than the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2McsaaJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">2008 Santa Catarina flooding<\/a>, which caused the death of 130 people.<\/p>\n<p>Approximately 160 others were injured and <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2Y4etO7\">15,000<\/a>\u00a0were forced to leave their homes across the state. By the time the rain stopped several days later, 12,000 were left homeless. With multiple distinct landslides hitting the area, the city\u2019s famous Christ the Redeemer statue <a href=\"https:\/\/bbc.in\/2WQJd3S\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">was shut off to traffic<\/a> for the first time in its history.<\/p>\n<h3>January 2011<\/h3>\n<p>Rains coming from the <em>regi\u00e3o serrana<\/em> (mountainous region) north of Rio proper caused death and destruction in five nearby cities: Teres\u00f3polis, Petr\u00f3polis, Nova Friburgo, Sumidouro, and S\u00e3o Jos\u00e9 do Vale do Rio Preto. With over <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2SDAJfU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">26cm of water<\/a> pouring down in less than 24 hours, the rain triggered a series of mudslides throughout the mountainous region. Nova Friburgo and Teres\u00f3polis each counted over 250 dead with the final death toll at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/reut.rs\/30ZMC2X\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">over 1,000<\/a> including <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2y8ZdV7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">13<\/a> from S\u00e3o Paulo. In Teres\u00f3polis alone, 1,000 people were left without homes.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-54924\" title=\"2011 Niteroi Mudslide Impact\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"465\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides.jpg 800w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides-174x131.jpg 174w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides-70x53.jpg 70w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Niteroi-Landslides-326x245.jpg 326w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>During the flooding, most of the Rio area went without electricity or phone service, and 60% of Teres\u00f3polis and 35% of Nova Friburgo&#8217;s citizens <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2y8ZdV7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">still had no access to clean water<\/a> days after the storm had passed.<\/p>\n<p>The January 2011 storm caused one of the area&#8217;s largest natural disasters in the past fifty years and brought increased attention to rapid urbanization, infrastructure, and housing rights issues within the context of natural disasters in Rio. It also laid bare Rio&#8217;s overall natural disaster preparedness: though <a href=\"https:\/\/reut.rs\/30ZMC2X\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">army helicopters<\/a> were deployed to rescue those injured and caught in debris, crumbling roads and bridges made groundwork difficult for both survivors and volunteers working in the damaged area.<\/p>\n<p>The disaster resulted in a <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2ZeSbKg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">governmental policy<\/a> requiring updated landslide and flood-risk maps (untouched since 1994), the development of a Pilot Urban Growth Monitoring System guiding cities to include disaster risk management in their urban expansion policies, and an improved early warning system for landslides and flooding, directly linked to Rio&#8217;s Civil Defense.<\/p>\n<h3>March 2013<\/h3>\n<p>On March 18, 2013, in Petr\u00f3polis, a mountain region 40 miles north of Rio, a river overflowed its banks and flooded the center of the city. Twenty-seven people were killed, including one child and two emergency workers. Some areas of the city saw as much as 39cm of rain in 24 hours, where the normal <em>monthly<\/em> average is usually 27cm. This came just two years after the state of Rio&#8217;s most devastating natural disaster. The number of displaced people was tallied at <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/32QYO7W\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">around 1,500<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As a statewide revamping of the natural disaster mitigation strategy was conducted only two years prior, Brazil&#8217;s\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/bbc.in\/2XhfXIz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">then-president Dilma Rousseff<\/a> stated that the\u00a0 &#8220;prevention system warns the people. What I think is that a little more drastic measures will have to be taken so people don&#8217;t stay where they are not supposed to be [in areas identified as high risk].&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3><b>December 2013<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>Heavy rains beginning on December 11, 2013 caused the death of <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Y2hBu4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">at least four people<\/a> and left an estimated 6,000 without their homes. This included <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Y2hBu4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">400 families<\/a> in the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WS99w8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Complexo do Alem\u00e3o<\/a> favela alone. Many buildings also collapsed as a result of the flooding, as captured in this <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XpEmes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">video<\/a>. In the absence of an effective government response, many people within Complexo do Alem\u00e3o and other favelas formed <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Y2hBu4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">networks to aid those who had lost their belongings<\/a> in the event and help distribute donations. On- and off-line networks developed, notably <a href=\"http:\/\/on.fb.me\/1eopAsD\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Juntos Pelo Complexo do Alem\u00e3o<\/a>\u00a0and Occupy Alem\u00e3o.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-42736 size-large\" title=\"Damages in Higien\u00f3polis, in Rio's North Zone, following the rains of February 2018. Photo: F\u00e1bio Motta\/Estad\u00e3o Conte\u00fado\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-1024x641.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"388\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-1024x641.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-620x388.jpg 620w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-1004x629.jpg 1004w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-768x481.jpg 768w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis-300x188.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Damage-in-Higieno\u0301polis.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3><b>February 2018<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>Heavy rains starting on February 14 and continuing overnight required the city to <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2FpBJPm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">declare a state of emergency<\/a>. <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2FpBJPm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Gale\u00e3o Airport<\/a> was forced to halt operations, and the Piedade, M\u00e9ier and Madureira weather stations recorded an <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2uOyNJu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">average of 33.96mm<\/a>\u00a0of rain between the emergency declaration at 1:25am and 1:45am. In <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XMIfdq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barra da Tijuca<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IupHWU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">123mm of rain<\/a> was recorded in one hour.<\/p>\n<p>Warning sirens were activated in <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2JoAccK\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">77 favelas<\/a> and many <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2FpBJPm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">roads<\/a> (as well as <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XW9xyh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Line 4<\/a> of Rio&#8217;s metro system) were closed due to falling trees and other debris. It was estimated that <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2JoAccK\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">four people were killed and 2,000 were left homeless<\/a>, most in the Complexo do Alem\u00e3o favelas. Mayor Crivella said he was &#8220;responding to the situation&#8221; from afar <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2HCIBsK\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">while on a trip to Europe<\/a> and again, those affected received urgent help from other favela residents and charitable organizations, such as community-based newspaper <em><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/18u3bEe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Voz das Comunidades<\/a><\/em> and mobilization NGO <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2qABIiE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Meu Rio,<\/a> while the City and state governments did little.<\/p>\n<p>This event was also one of the last issues raised by city councilor and human rights advocate <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XZZwQE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Marielle Franco<\/a> in her <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WVG6Yn\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">final speech<\/a> to Rio&#8217;s City Council prior to her <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2GFON6e\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">assassination<\/a> one month later, demanding greater attention for the increase in flooding and landslide events and their impact on the city.<\/p>\n<h3><b>February 2019<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2N02EUB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Almost exactly a year later<\/a>, several flash floods and landslides were recorded <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Fp6l3t\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">from February 6-8<\/a>. In one hour, the city received the equivalent of <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">one month&#8217;s rainfall<\/a>. Among the hardest-hit areas were <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IXrKBT\">Vidigal<\/a> and Rocinha favelas, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2TQ59uh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">respectively recording 161.2 and 164mm of rain<\/a> in just six hours. Winds blew up to <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Fp6l3t\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">100km per hour<\/a>, causing several trees to fall. <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Six people<\/a>, including one child, were killed\u2014one in Vidigal, one in Rocinha, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">two<\/a> in <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XIohMN\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barra de Guaratiba<\/a>, and <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">two<\/a> on Niemeyer Avenue. Social media posts revealed the severe damage caused by the storm, such as <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2XITmzV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">this video<\/a> shared by Rocinha community journalist <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2Jr8EWc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Michel Silva<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-54122 size-large\" title=\"Debris accumulated after the rains, including a flipped bus. Photo: floodlist.com\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"349\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019-174x98.jpg 174w, https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/feb2019.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Despite the repeated landslides and flooding events and subsequent calls for more government action, the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2RbcNzL\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) on Flooding<\/a> launched by Rio&#8217;s City Council has revealed that municipal agencies responsible for flood control and prevention measures had experienced <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2ZayRxh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">severe budget cuts<\/a> in recent years: as of April, the <a href=\"https:\/\/glo.bo\/2RssxP3\">City has not spent a single cent on containment or urban drainage works in 2019<\/a>. Likewise, the CPI found that Rio&#8217;s Civil Defense is experiencing a <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IflhTG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">decreasing budget<\/a> and its training programs for disaster relief for favela community leaders have suffered from discontinuity.<\/p>\n<h3><b>April 2019<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>The city was hit again by flash flooding and landslides <a href=\"https:\/\/bbc.in\/2WYoF9A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">beginning on April 8<\/a> and continuing overnight. Some parts of the city saw <a href=\"https:\/\/bbc.in\/2WYoF9A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">more than 310mm of rain<\/a> in a single day, breaking the record for the strongest recorded rainfall in Rio in over three decades (previously set by the rains of 2010). Flash floods and landslides <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2IhGH1g\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">killed ten people and left dozens more homeless<\/a>. The damage was considerably harder to mitigate, especially in favelas, given that the torrential rains hit less than a month after <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WRdnnG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">February\u2019s tragedies<\/a>\u2014from which many communities were <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2vWeWpu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">still struggling to recover<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While Vidigal received visits from the Civil Defense, overall, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2WLrtvq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">government response was again lacking<\/a> and much of the aid and cleanup was done by favela residents themselves as a result of community mobilization efforts.<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Gx5x7jtyv68\" width=\"620\" height=\"349\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Global climate patterns indicate that the city of Rio de Janeiro will <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2KOYrnu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">continue to experience extreme weather events<\/a>\u2014and if the current trend of inaction continues, the repercussions will continue to worsen. Favelas deserve <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/30fDeI9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">less blame and more attention<\/a> from competent public authorities. Though emergency response efforts organized by residents and community-based organizations should be applauded as they embody the spirit of <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2KF228s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">resilience that is characteristic of Rio&#8217;s favelas<\/a>, the government should not be absolved of its responsibility to mitigate the risk of foreseeable and preventable disasters. While landslides and flash flooding are environmental problems, they are exacerbated by the <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/2bLoScc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">political and social stigma around favelas<\/a>\u2014which, in turn, leads to entire communities being ignored during times of crisis.<\/p>\n<p>History shows that the negative impacts of these natural disasters and the government&#8217;s prevention efforts are negatively correlated: the former is rising as the latter diminishes. In the face of global climate change, more government action must be taken to prevent and mitigate these disasters. In the absence of a coordinated policy initiative to address this need, the entire city of Rio may risk irreversible environmental catastrophe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas Landslides and flooding as a result of heavy rains are nothing new, especially for Rio de Janeiro. But over the past years, the situation has gotten visibly worse. While increasing climate <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=54116\" title=\"Rio\u2019s Rising Climate Vulnerability: A Decade-Long Timeline of Devastation Wrought by Landslides [REFERENCE]\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":191,"featured_media":12820,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2555,1288,335,1282,452,1329],"tags":[2399,225,162,2006,472,756,32,2960,910,1988,474,2436,221,182,1197,203,348,151,2970,2225,673,820,387,218,551,37,664,671,13,1616,1798,12,535,156,453,363,2878],"writer":[2964],"translator":[],"illustrator":[],"photographer":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-54116","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-monitoringcrivella","8":"category-highlight","9":"category-policies","10":"category-research-analysis","11":"category-rio20","12":"category-by-international-observers","13":"tag-environmental-hazard-designation","14":"tag-barra-da-tijuca","15":"tag-city-council","16":"tag-civil-defense","17":"tag-climate-change","18":"tag-community-organizing","19":"tag-complexo-do-alemao","20":"tag-containment-works","21":"tag-creative-organizing","22":"tag-engineering","23":"tag-environment","24":"tag-environmental-justice","25":"tag-favela-culture","26":"tag-government-neglect","27":"tag-greater-rio","28":"tag-inequality","29":"tag-laboriaux","30":"tag-landslide-risk","31":"tag-landslides","32":"tag-marcelo-crivella","33":"tag-misplaced-public-priorities","34":"tag-morro-do-bumba","35":"tag-morro-dos-macacos","36":"tag-mutirao","37":"tag-niteroi","38":"tag-north-zone","39":"tag-prazeres","40":"tag-president-dilma-rousseff","41":"tag-rain","42":"tag-reference","43":"tag-rio-state","44":"tag-rocinha","45":"tag-sanitation","46":"tag-south-zone","47":"tag-stigma","48":"tag-vidigal","49":"tag-wilson-witzel","50":"writer-abby-hanna"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54116","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/191"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54116"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54116\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54116"},{"taxonomy":"writer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwriter&post=54116"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftranslator&post=54116"},{"taxonomy":"illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fillustrator&post=54116"},{"taxonomy":"photographer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fphotographer&post=54116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}