Floods in Brazil’s Minas Gerais kill at least 68 as search efforts continue

Floods triggered by days of intense rainfall in Brazil's Minas Gerais state have left at least 68 people dead since Monday, said authorities, as rescue teams continued searching for missing residents amid weather warnings.

The Minas Gerais State Fire Department said additional bodies were recovered following severe flooding that struck the cities of Juiz de Fora and Uba.

Officials reported that 62 of the fatalities occurred in Juiz de Fora and six in Uba.

It stressed that search operations are continuing for five missing people and said landslides caused several homes to collapse.

The National Center for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters (Cemaden) cautioned that heavy rainfall is expected to continue, raising the risk of new floods and flash flooding in affected areas.

State and federal authorities have deployed civil defense teams, security forces and medical personnel to assist communities affected by the disaster.

The administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva previously announced that new aid packages would be transferred to municipalities to support residents left homeless by the floods.