SAO PAULO, March 12 ,, Heavy rains and flooding have killed at least 11 people and injured another six in Brazil’s biggest city, Sao Paulo and the greater metropolitan area, local officials said on Monday.
In a downpour on Sunday night, five people drowned and six people were killed by mudslides, according to the Fire Department of Sao Paulo’s Military Police. Heavy rains flooded streets in Sao Paulo, cutting off traffic between the city and surrounding towns, such as Santo Andre, Diadema, Sao Caetano and Sao Bernardo do Campo.
Sao Paulo’s acting mayor, Eduardo Tuma, said overnight the city saw 80 percent of the total rain expected in the month of March.
“The situation that occurred last night was absolutely unpredictable and extraordinary. There was nothing we could have done to prevent what happened today,” said Tuma. Weather forecasts said the rains were expected to subside over the coming hours, but strong winds would continue to batter the area.Enditem
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