Sharjah24 – AFP: Violent rains lashed the southeastern Brazilian state of Espirito Santo, leaving two people dead less than a week after a deadly storm devastated the city of Petropolis in neighboring Rio de Janeiro state, authorities said Monday.
The storms in Espirito Santo, which started Sunday, forced more than 1,200 people to evacuate their homes and destroyed another 43 people's houses, said state emergency officials.
One person was crushed by a collapsing wall and killed in the city of Alegre, and another swept away trying to retrieve a car from severe flooding in the city of Nova Venecia, officials said.
Another person was injured.
The Atlantic coast state is known for its tropical beaches and beautiful mountains.
The storms come after torrential rains Tuesday in Petropolis that triggered flash floods and landslides, killing at least 165 people.
They are the latest in a series of deadly storms to hit Brazil, which experts say are made worse by climate change.
In the past three months, at least 219 people have died in severe rainstorms, mainly in the southeastern state of Sao Paulo and the northeastern state of Bahia, as well as Petropolis and now Espirito Santo.
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