Traffic in flood on Avenida Brasil - Fausto Maia/Thenews2/Estadão Conteúdo

By: Elisa Ventorini and Maria Luiza Silva (Grade 5)

The approach of a cold front caused strong storms across the state. According to meteorologists, Rio de Janeiro could record from 300mm to 500mm of rainfall between the nights of 21st and 24th of March, mainly in the Mountain Region and Baixada Fluminense.

All of this ends up disrupting the functioning of carioca’s lives, as the city is not prepared to receive this amount of rain. Several streets are flooded due to blocked drains, which make traffic difficult. Homeless people have no shelter, making them even more vulnerable. Besides, there are landslides that end up killing people and destroying their homes. All of these are problems caused by storms and the lack of preparation of cities’ administration.

Because of global warming, the intensity of rain and the risk of floods is only going to increase. The time to fix this problem isn’t now, it passed a long time ago. However, we can still do something about it.

Some studies show that with reforestation the capacity of the soil to absorb water increases considerably and can effectively help lower the risk of big floods. It is also crucial to provide safe and affordable places for people living in risky areas to move to. Creating a better infrastructure for the city is really important.

Rio’s citizens shouldn’t have to live in the constant fear of having their houses and belongings, let alone lives, destroyed every time it rains. Actions need to be taken urgently so that people can feel safer and that tragedies can be avoided.

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