The January 2010 Rio de Janeiro floods and mudslides was an extreme weather event that affected the State of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil in the first days of January 2010. At least 85 people died,[1] with at least 29 people in the Hotel Sankey after it was destroyed by landslides,[3] and many more have been injured.[2] More than 4,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes.[2]
 The State of Rio de Janeiro within Brazil | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Duration | 30 December 2009 – 6 January 2010 |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | At least 85[1][2] |
| Areas affected | State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
The worst affected municipality was Angra dos Reis, about 150 kilometres (93 mi) southwest of the city of Rio de Janeiro. At least 35 people were killed at a resort on Ilha Grande:[4] about forty people were staying in the hotel which was buried under a mudslide, and the death toll is expected to rise further.[5] Brazil's only functioning nuclear power plant, Central Nuclear Almirante Álvaro Alberto, is also located within the municipality: plans were made for a temporary shutdown, as blocked roads would make any evacuation difficult or impossible in the event of an incident at the plant.[2]
In Rio Grande do Sul, at least seven people died and 20 went missing after a bridge collapsed due to heavy rains.[6]
Around 60 tons of dead fish washed up in a lagoon in Rio de Janeiro beginning in January,[7][8][9] possibly as a result of local ocean anoxia caused by algal blooms triggered by increased eutrophication from the excess run-off produced by the flooding.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "More deaths feared after Brazil landslides". ABC News. January 3, 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
- ^ a b c d Brazil landslides 'may close nuclear plants', BBC News, 3 January 2010.
- ^ "29 dead as mudslide wipes out hotel". ABC News. January 2, 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
- ^ Brazil death toll from floods, mudslides rises to 64, Reuters, 2 January 2010.
- ^ Scores are killed in flooding and mudslides, France24, 2 January 2010, archived from the original on 3 January 2010.
- ^ Xinhua, China Daily (January 6, 2010). "At least 7 killed in Bridge collapse in Brazil". China Daily. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
- ^ "40 tons of dead fish removed off Brazil coast". Deccan Chronicle. March 1, 2010. Archived from the original on 6 March 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
- ^ foreign, AP (February 28, 2010). "50 tons of dead fish wash up in Rio lagoon". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
- ^ "60 tons of fish die in Rio de Janeiro lagoon". London Evening Standard. January 3, 2010. Archived from the original on September 13, 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
Further reading
edit- Mudslide in Brazil resort kills at least 19 people, BBC News, 2 January 2010.
- Brazil storms and landslides kill at least 18, BBC News, 31 December 2009.
External links
edit- In pictures: Brazil's mudslide tragedy, picture gallery from BBC News