Rains in RS leave more than 1,600 homeless and homeless

Correio do Povo systematizes the damage recorded in each municipality in the state. The Taquari Valley, in the northeast of Rio Grande do Sul, is the area most affected by the rains.

Lajeado has the majority of homeless people – 540 people. According to Folha, residents of risk areas were removed from their homes. But the impacts of the rains were also strong in Porto Xavier (200 homeless) and Encantado (152).

In Feliz, about 80 km from Porto Alegre, the rise of the Caí River destroyed the FelizCidade Bridge. The original bridge was destroyed by the climate disaster of May 2024 and rebuilt by the community itself, who raised funds through raffles and donations. The new structure had already been affected by the heavy rains of January 2025 in Serra Gaúcha, and its work was only completed in March of this year, recall CNN Brasil and g1.

According to GZH, in several cities in Rio Grande do Sul, rainfall over five days exceeded the historical average for the month of July. The city where it rained the most was Paraí, with 247 mm accumulated, followed by Ibirapuitã (230 mm) and Marau (224 mm). The average for the month in the three municipalities varies between 151 and 159 mm.

The arrival of a new cold front in the South Region “pushed” the precipitation to other locations. The metropolitan region of Porto Alegre recorded flooding on Wednesday (22/7), especially due to the rise in the level of the Jacuí River. In São Jerônimo, the river exceeded the flood level and three families were evacuated from their homes yesterday morning. In Cachoeira do Sul, the Civil Defense began to preventively remove residents living near Jacuí. In the morning, the river level was 20.2 meters, slightly below the flood level (21 meters), reports g1.

In an interview with CNN Brasil, the RS state civil defense and protection coordinator, Colonel Luciano Chaves Boeira, highlighted that the impact of this week's rains remains much smaller than those recorded in the 2024 floods. However, he warned of the need for prevention in the coming months, due to the “Super El Niño”, which could form by the end of the year.

“This time, the levels [of the rivers] did not reach even close to the flood we had, but we need to be careful because we are in an El Niño year, which always brings concern to Rio Grande do Sul”, he highlighted.

According to MetSul, the expectation is that the rains will be less intense this Friday (24). There is a forecast of variable cloudiness in most municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul, with the possibility of drizzle or light rain in the afternoon and evening.

CNN Brasil, Correio Braziliense, Estadão, Poder360, UOL and Veja also covered the rain situation in RS.