Death toll from rains in southern Brazil climbs to 29, Lula visits region
The death toll from heavy rains in Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state has risen to 29, with 60 people missing and 10,242 displaced. The state government declared a state of public calamity to handle the situation, which Governor Eduardo Leite described as the most critical in the state’s history. More than 300,000 people are without electricity due to a dam bursting at a hydroelectric plant. President Lula flew over the affected areas and promised federal government assistance.