The Eagle News Service:

Heavy rains in Brazil’s southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul this week claimed at least lives of 56 people, local authorities said on Saturday evening, while dozens people are still missing.

Rio Grande do Sul’s civil defense authority said 74 people were still missing and more than 69,000 had been displaced as storms in the last few days have affected nearly two thirds of the 497 cities in the state, which borders Uruguay and Argentina.

The local authority said it is now investigating whether another seven deaths were related to the storms, after earlier in the day it had reported a total of more than 56 deaths.

Floods damaged roads and bridges in several regions of the state in Brazil. The heavy rains also triggered landslides and the partial collapse of a dam at a small hydroelectric power plant. A second dam in the city of Bento Goncalves is also at risk of collapsing, authorities said.

In Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, the Guaiba lake broke its banks, flooding streets. Porto Alegre’s international airport has suspended all flights for an indefinite period.

State Governor Eduardo Leite said that Rio Grande do Sul would need a “Marshall Plan” to recover from the storms and its consequences, referring to a plan for Europe’s economic recovery after World War Two.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said on X that his government is in constant contact with state and cities’ authorities to support the region with whatever they need.