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3w ago

Lula Visits Minas Gerais as Landslides Push Death Toll to 70

Firefighters continue searching for the missing after the rainiest February in years in Brazil’s southeast.

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Residents carry away their belongings at the site where homes collapsed due to heavy rains and flooding in the Parque Burnier neighborhood of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
Residents recover belongings after homes collapsed due to heavy rains and flooding in the Parque Burnier neighborhood of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
A dog named Lucky is held by firefighters after rescue from the site where homes collapsed due to heavy rains and flooding in the Parque Burnier neighborhood of Juiz de Fora, in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Overview

  • Police updated the toll to 70 dead, including 13 children, with firefighters reporting three people still missing.
  • Juiz de Fora and Ubá were hardest hit, with mudslides sweeping away homes and more than 5,500 residents displaced.
  • President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva toured affected areas, met residents and local officials, and pledged federal support.
  • The federal government previously authorized about 3.4 million reais ($660,000) for immediate reconstruction and humanitarian aid.
  • Inmet reported exceptional rainfall, with Juiz de Fora exceeding 760 mm in February—over triple the monthly average—and had warned of further flood and landslide risk across Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.