International
Brazil storm death toll rises to 165
AFP
The death toll from torrential rains that triggered flash floods and landslides in the scenic Brazilian city of Petropolis has risen to 165, authorities said Sunday, as more violent storms killed two people in another region nearby.
Rescue workers and residents searching for their missing relatives continued digging through mountains of mud and rubble in Petropolis, which President Jair Bolsonaro said Friday looked like it had been through a “war.”
It is unclear how high the steadily rising death toll will go. It is unlikely any more survivors will be found beneath the wreckage, authorities say.
The dead include at least 28 children, police said.
Weather chaos continued to batter Brazil as more violent rains lashed the southeastern state of Espirito Santo Sunday.
The new storms killed at least two people, said emergency officials in Espirito Santo, which borders Rio de Janeiro state, where Petropolis is located.
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.
The storms forced more than 1,200 people to evacuate their homes and destroyed another 43 people’s houses, they said.
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.
Pope Francis sent his latest message of condolences Sunday following his Angelus prayer at Saint Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
“I express my closeness to those people hit in previous days by natural calamities,” he said, mentioning “devastated” Petropolis as well as Madagascar, hit recently by deadly cyclones.
“Lord, welcome the dead in peace, comfort the family members and support those who offer aid,” he said.
– ‘Mega clean-up’ –
The storm turned streets in Petropolis into violent rivers that swept away trees, cars and buses, and triggered deadly landslides in poor hillside neighborhoods that ring the city of 300,000 people.
It dumped a month’s worth of rain in several hours on the picturesque tourist town, which was the 19th-century summer capital of the Brazilian empire.
The city held what it called a “mega clean-up operation” Sunday, aided by 370 sanitation workers sent in as reinforcements from the nearby cities of Rio de Janeiro and Niteroi.
The mayor’s office urged residents to stay home except in case of “extreme necessity” to let clean-up crews clear the piles of muck and debris still clogging streets.
Authorities have so far recovered more than 300 cars that were “strewn around the city, blocking streets and sidewalks or stuck in rivers,” they said.
“We need our streets clear so we can speed up the job of getting our city back on its feet,” Mayor Rubens Bomtempo said in a statement.
There is no word on when those who lost their homes or had to evacuate will be able to return to the hardest-hit areas, if at all.
At least 856 people are being housed in emergency shelters, according to officials.
A steady stream of funerals for victims meanwhile continued at the city’s main cemetery, where the local government brought in extra grave-diggers as reinforcements.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
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