The city of Rio de Janeiro set up an emergency operational base in the neighborhood of Santíssimo, in the west zone of the city, to assist residents who had their houses flooded by the rupture of the pipeline of the concessionaire Rio+Saneamento, on Estrada do Lameirão, this Saturday morning (25). Many families lost furniture and appliances and were left with more than a meter of water in their homes. Some regions may have their water supply suspended.
The Municipal Civil Defense inspected 30 properties, two of which were banned: a store due to structural risk and a house due to uninhabitability, since it was completely flooded.
The mayor of the capital, Eduardo, Paes canceled the agenda and went to the neighborhood, accompanied by the secretaries of the Civil House, Eduardo Cavaliere and Social Assistance, Adilson Pires, in addition to representatives of operational bodies. Paes visited residents of several houses invaded by water, which in some places reached more than one meter in height. Then, he determined the immediate action of municipal bodies to supervise the performance of the concessionaire in indemnifying the damage caused to the population.
“We are here helping with an emergency issue. Luckily, nothing more serious happened, we didn’t lose any lives. We will draw water with a suction pump and the Urban Cleaning Company (Comlurb) will help clean the houses. The team is all mobilized, we will stay here following until everything is resolved”, said the mayor.
Support
Teams from Comlurb, Rio-Águas, Civil Defense, Social Assistance and Health went to the place to provide assistance to residents. The City Hall’s operational base, set up in the neighborhood, is under the coordination of the Secretary of the Civil House, Eduardo Cavaliere.
The Municipal Secretariat for Social Assistance is identifying the needs of families and registering people who have lost documents. So far, around 100 families have been assisted.
According to the Municipal Secretary of Health, one person had to be sent to the Municipal Hospital Rocha Faria, in Campo Grande, and the state of health is stable. Professionals from two family clinics and a municipal health center are providing assistance to those in need and checking which residents have lost regularly used medication to replace them. Health Surveillance is also carrying out preventive actions to avoid diseases caused by water.
The Secretariat of Conservation is using trucks to drain water from the road and residents’ homes. They are also cleaning the storm sewer and clearing the manholes and using bucket trucks and backhoes to remove materials such as wood, mud and sand, which were spread by the force of the water during the leak.
Comlurb has a team of 70 street sweepers working with the support of six dump trucks, two wheel loaders, a mini shovel, two water pipes for washing the roads with reuse water. The work consists of scraping the streets, cleaning the sidewalks and the interior of the most affected homes, and removing furniture lost due to the force of the water.
Estrada do Lameirão is closed between Avenida Brasil and Rua Itaquê, with access only allowed for residents. Agents from the Rio Traffic Engineering Company (CET-RIO) and the Municipal Guard guide drivers. Alternatively, users should use Estrada do Quafá or Estrada do Mendanha.
In a note, the concessionaire Rio + Saneamento informed that it “immediately moved its teams to Estrada do Lameirão, initiating repairs to contain the leak, which has already been done”. may affect the neighborhoods of Santíssimo, Senador Camará, Campo Grande, Guaratiba and Ilha de Guaratiba, all in the west zone.
