SOS-RS Brazil Floods

On the early days of May 2024, relentless storms descended upon Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state of Brazil. My homeland. Combining abnormally high levels of down pouring storms and irresponsible administrations that wrote off over 500 laws protecting the environment, and neglecting the maintenance of many of the safety / anti-flooding structures in place , that weren’t enough or in condition to retain the imminent flooding; it all resulted in the biggest climate disaster in our history. The area of this devastation is, as of right now, twice as bad as Katrina. Hundreds of thousands, statewide, barely had time to save their own lives. Many , humans and animals, had to wait for days for rescue, even resorting to rooftops. But in that time of adversity, our people showed what were made of , bravely banding together and helping thy neighbor out, given a great majority of rescues were by civilians, in small boats, jet skis, fishing boats.. anything available to carry those afflicted by the flood to safety. Shelters have been improvised immediately and, just like the rescues, much has been ran and managed by civilian volunteers as well; hence the local authorities could only take on so much, given the outstanding spread of the infrastructure breakdown. Bridges fell, roads flooded and cracked, some cities ( where my parents live included) were isolated for weeks, in result of the floods and subsequent erosion. Some locations are still flooded, almost a month later, while so many are dealing with the aftermath of the destruction. The water from 5 or more river systems in my state converge towards Guaíba river, which bathes my hometown, Porto Alegre- the state capital. At the flood’s peak, the water levels rose above 17 feet, causing massive destruction in our historic downtown and the main hub of jobs of our city. As well as many other neighborhoods and major landmarks in my city ( our soccer stadiums, our airport, closed undeterminably) , that remain flooded, due to lack of working pumps to drain the water, or the fact the rain still lurks, hence its autumn in the southern hemisphere and the winter is fast approaching. Not only I come here to ask for your support in order to rebuild my city and my state, but also to help support all those who are now outta work, since their workplaces were also destroyed/damaged by the floods. Many people who I am in touch directly are in dire need of support as well. It’s hard to put in words and itemize all that will need help because it nearly affected everyone’s daily lives. Specially the artists, who were barely recovering from the pandemic days, and now most of the stages and galleries were once they were able to share their craft have their doors closed. Another group who need our support is the MST
 https://mst.org.br/english/
who promptly set up community kitchens and have been feeding those who are living in shelters since the beginning of this crisis. And I cant forget to be the voice for the voiceless: The animals Shelters already had it rough, but now there’s a huge demand for shelters and foster homes; since many animals were already in shelters, many are trying to rejoin with their missing pets, and many families no longer have a home to take their animals back. Cats, dogs, livestock.. even horses. I hope to be able to send them help as well, hence some people that I know were already working for NGO’s and saving animals on their own time and dime, long before this flood. This is a developing story, and news are coming everyday. As well as what’s needed, as the situation is still dire, and uncertain, since my homeland is in the edge of the winter. Thank you so much for your attention and consideration. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or would like to support in any other way.
Best wishes, Ike