Brazil had a record 1,161 geological and geo-hydrological hazards in 2023, according to data compiled by the National Center for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters (Cemaden), a federal agency. The numbers include events such as landslides and river overflows of varying magnitudes.
Cemaden director Regina Alvalá said in a statement last week that 2023 was “peculiar in terms of climate,” due to the rapid transition from La Niña to the ongoing El Niño episode, causing changes in rainfall patterns.
“The rainfall rates recorded in 2023 were much higher in the South [of Brazil] and lower in the North and Northeast,” Ms. Alvalá said.
“Climate change also contributed to this entire process. A warmer ocean means more water vapor in the atmosphere, causing intense and concentrated rain,” she adds.
2023 was the hottest year on record, both globally and in Brazil.
Data collected by the Regional Integration Ministry shows that 132 people died as a result of disasters related to rainfall in 2023, and over 520,000 people were left displaced, most notably in Brazil’s South, as well as in parts of the states of Amazonas, Pará, and Maranhão. A landslide in the city of São Sebastião in the state of São Paulo, in February 2023, killed 64 people.
Data also indicates losses of over BRL 5 billion (USD 1 billion) in material damage to infrastructure works, public facilities, and housing units, and a total of BRL 25 billion in losses when private property is taken into account.
Since 2019, more than 60 percent of Brazilian cities have faced some type of emergency caused by extreme climate events, according to data compiled by think tank Instituto Talanoa at the request of The Brazilian Report.
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