- Tens of thousands of Haitians and Venezuelans who fled to southern Brazil are struggling to rebuild their lives after severe floods in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
- According to a report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the state is home to 46,000 refugees, including 29,000 Venezuelans and 12,000 Haitians.
- Rio Grande do Sul has become the third-largest refugee-hosting country in the government’s resettlement program for people fleeing Venezuela.
Tens of thousands of Haitians and Venezuelans who fled hunger, violence and natural disasters in southern Brazil are struggling to rebuild their lives after severe floods in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the state is currently home to around 46,000 refugees, including 29,000 Venezuelans and 12,000 Haitians.
Rio Grande do Sul has become the third state to receive the most refugees from the government’s humanitarian program aimed at bringing in people fleeing Venezuela, on Brazil’s northern border.
Water rationing ordered as severe flooding devastated southern Brazil
Most of the refugees live in the Sarandi district on the north side of Porto Alegre, the area hardest hit by flooding after the levee burst.
Aerial view of the center of Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul state, after the flooding of the Guaiba River in Porto Alegre, Brazil, May 5, 2024. Tens of thousands of Haitians and Venezuelans who fled hunger, violence and natural disasters in southern Brazil are struggling to rebuild their lives after severe flooding in Rio Grande do Sul state. (Ramiro Sanchez/Getty Images)
The 26,042 Sarandi residents whose homes were flooded are currently evacuated to evacuation centers across the city. Migrants, many of whom are in the country illegally, are in a hurry to leave everything behind as floodwaters rise, adding to the anxiety of the migrants.
Karina Gonzalez, a 27-year-old Venezuelan, had to leave behind a backpack containing her documents and those of her 11-year-old daughter when she fled her chest-deep home in water.
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Karina and her husband, Xavier, have guaranteed jobs, but are worried about how they will get to work.
They fled to Brazil in 2018, fleeing political tensions and economic crisis in neighboring Venezuela. Now they are facing upheaval again.
