Floods and landslides in Brazil: a case study of the 2011 event

A case study of the 2011 event

In January 2011 more than 900 people were killed by huge debris flows generated by heavy rainfall in Brazil. Much of the damage and loss of life occurred in areas where people should not have been living, but local authorities had not enforced the planning restrictions. This article is relevant to topics on natural hazards, weather and climate and urban development

Orlando Graeff, Antonio Guerra and Maria do Carmo Jorge

Debris and car wreckage on Cuiabá floodplain after the January 2011 event

Catastrophic floods and landslides hit the mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro state in January 2011. This article focuses on just part of the area affected: the Cuiabá River in Petrópolis Municipality (Figure 1). This area has steep slopes, shallow soils and heavy thunderstorms in summer, all creating the risk of floods and landslides. A lack of urban planning added to the risk. The local authority had been warned to take preventative action more than a decade earlier, but had done little.

The Cuiabá River Basin is in the Serra do Mar mountain range. Its total area is 37.19 km2. The area remained rural until the 1970s, but today there is less rural activity, and more emphasis on leisure, including small hotels, condominiums and second homes, mainly for people who live in Rio de Janeiro.