“Unfortunately, the water won’t wait.” The phrase comes from Jessica Ferreira, 33, who woke up at dawn as a flood swept through the room where she was sleeping with her two children, in Aguas Lindas de Goias, on the outskirts of the city of de Goias.
The residents’ report summarizes the scenario of devastation that prompted the municipality of Intorno de Defe to declare a state of emergency after days of torrential rain that led to the collapse of the walls of houses and mud everywhere, displacing at least 12 families.
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The area most affected by the heavy rains was the fourth neighborhood of Al-Baraghm. The scene was mud everywhere, accumulated water, and collapsed walls.
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Manuel Andre, 46, also faced difficult times and his house was covered in mud, stones and branches washed away by the rain.
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He lives with his wife, Carlene da Silva Santos, 45, who ended up injuring her leg when the flood washed away and hit her refrigerator.
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Cerlandia de Jesus Santos, 40 years old, also faced moments of despair and suffering due to the rains that the region witnessed.
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Manuel shows the damage to the wall of his house caused by rain
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The resident speaks with the firefighter who gives instructions on how to leave the area
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Jessica Ferreira de Moura said she woke up in the early hours of the morning to a loud bang, and realized that water was already reaching the bed inside the room.
Brinno Esaki/Metropolis
the Capitals On Thursday morning (11/26), I accompanied the residents of the area and visited the area most affected by the storm in recent days, the fourth neighborhood of Al-Baragham. There is mud everywhere, accumulated water, collapsed walls, overturned furniture, houses without gates, and wet clothes on the line.
Residents become homeless
Jessica Ferreira de Moura is a resident of Paragem IV. She stated that she woke up in the early hours of the morning to a loud noise and realized that water was already reaching the bed inside the room.
The woman lives in the house with her two children, aged 13 and 7, and she recalled the desperate scenario and that her only reaction at the time was to try to close the door with her eldest son until she waited for the water to subside.
Afterwards, she and her eldest son went out to inspect the damage: the scene was complete devastation. According to information, the wall of the residence was destroyed and the gate was torn due to the strong current.
“All my things were wet: my wardrobe was damaged and my refrigerator was burned. We lost a lot of things,” he said.
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Disaster scenario
Facing a disaster scenario, Jessica faces another worry: having nowhere to go. She stated that she received a visit from social assistance, but she did not intend to leave the property for fear of losing it.
“I don’t want to leave here to go to school because if I leave my house like this, people will come and take everything. This is all I have. I can’t leave the house,” Jessica said.
Jessica also said this is not the first time water has invaded the residence. According to Jessica, this has happened twice already, and even after the wall was reinforced, the pressure of the flood caused the structure to collapse.
“People here risk their lives every day,” he declared. “I risk their lives along with my children and animals. If I leave here, I don’t know what I will do. If I leave, I risk losing my home. If I stay, I risk losing my life.”
Another resident of the same neighborhood, Manuel Andre (46 years old), also faced difficult times and his house was covered with mud, stones and branches washed away by the rain.
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The floods swept stones, branches and debris into homes in the area.
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The city council activated machines to clean the area
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Civil Defense assessed the area
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The falling wall reveals the power of the water
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A citizen notices damage to the wall of his residence
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City Hall is asking for state and national support
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The decree stated that the floods caused the interruption of basic services
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Rain has fallen on the city since the end of last week
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Neighbors intervened
He said that the water arrived very violently this time. According to Manuel, structural changes made to a residence on the street above have contributed to the increased influx that has engulfed many properties.
“The water came and had nowhere to go, so it accumulated and turned into a bowl of water. Then it started flowing into the empty spaces, damaging the rest and the bottom,” he said.
Manuel explained that he had already activated machines to correct the unevenness in the area and that the city council had also installed barriers, but everything was at risk after the interventions made by the neighbor.
He lives with his wife, Carlene Da Silva Santos, 45, who ended up injuring her leg when the flood dragged and hit her refrigerator. Carlin said she woke up to the sound of the back area of the house collapsing.
She says she has lived in the area for 15 years and has never seen anything like this happen before. Carlinci says he woke up with water in his bed, and when he got up, items inside the house were already floating.
For her, the moment was one of panic. Carlin says that when the water entered her home, she was unable to move and was struck by several objects that were floating.
“It’s something we only see on TV, right? I thought it would never happen to us. But I said, ‘Oh my God, it’s something I never thought I would go through, ever in my life,'” he said.
Due to the rains, the family lost all their material possessions and had to leave their home due to the risk of collapse.
Cerlandia de Jesus Santos, 40, also faced moments of despair and suffering due to the rain that fell on the area. She says that since she was young, she faced the shock of not being able to sleep when it rained heavily.
She said she faced a similar situation in 2023, when the wall of her house collapsed due to water pressure, but the structure was rebuilt and she thought she would never go through that again.
Cerlandia lives with her 20-year-old son, Eduardo de Jesus Santos. The two were unharmed, but she lost the washing machine she had just purchased.
The resident admits she had never seen so much water in her life, and one of her main concerns when she heard the sound of the wall falling was to know the condition of her dog.
He added: “We could not leave the house because the door went inside, but we called through the window and he appeared. Then we pressed the door until we were able to open it. I ran and surrounded him. My dog is alive and we are alive, thank God.”
The municipality is in a state of emergency
In the face of proven catastrophe, the Mayor of the Municipality of Goiás, Dr. Lucas (Uniao Brasil), this Thursday (27/11), signed the decree placing the municipality in a state of emergency after days of torrential rains that caused floods, structural damage and left families homeless.
The politician also announced the establishment of a committee to coordinate immediate actions and short- and long-term planning. Meanwhile, Águas Lindas Development Company (Codeal) was responsible for the Reconstruction Working Group (GT-Reconstrução).
According to Dr. Lucas, all departments have been mobilized to assist the affected population.
The director stressed that the municipality is “not in a position” to carry out the restructuring work on its own and that the decree will be conveyed to the Goiás government and the federal government so that they can form a working group to support the municipality.
Under the decree, the state of emergency must last for at least 180 days, affecting urban and rural areas in Aguas Lindas affected by heavy rains, flooding, inundation, erosion and other damage.
Among the emergency measures, the Community Center for the Elderly (CCI) will be used as a support base for homeless families. If demand increases, municipal schools will also be opened to receive residents.