Brasileia could change location after flooding of the Acre River – 03/10/2024 – Daily Life

The Municipality of Brasileia, in the interior of Acre, intends to move the municipal headquarters to a higher part of the region after being hit by the biggest flood of the Acre River, which began on February 24th. Public administration headquarters such as the city hall itself, Planning, Social Assistance and Health departments, City Council and Civil Police Station were underwater and have not yet been reactivated.

Of the city’s 15 neighborhoods, 12 were submerged, which represents 75% of the entire urban area, according to municipal management. More than 15 thousand people were affected. This is the fourth major river flood in 12 years and for the first time it affected the rural area of ​​the municipality, leaving 617 families isolated. The Chico Mendes Extractive Reserve, a pioneer in the concept of a sustainable use conservation unit, also suffered the consequences of the incident.

According to Mayor Fernanda Hassen (PT), a study is being developed in partnership with the State Department of Public Works to relocate the neighborhoods, including the center, which brings together the Executive headquarters. The project also foresees the construction of affordable housing for residents who have lost everything and will not be able to return to their land.

“The City of Brasileia proposed to the federal and state governments a humanitarian aid project and reestablishment of the city’s headquarters, with the move to a safer area. We have reached the historic quota at the top of the Acre River. We are going to donate the land to the construction of popular housing and public administration institutions”, he told Sheet.

The project does not yet have a start date. The migration could take more than 3,400 families to the upper part. The state government and city hall must present the proposal to the federal government by March 18, with the aim of raising resources and receiving logistical support. On the 4th, ministers Waldez Góes (Integration and Regional Development) and Marina Silva (Environment and Climate Change), born in Acre, participated in a technical visit to Brasileia.

The municipality of 26 thousand inhabitants was one of the most affected by the river’s flood, which annually records floods in the winter period in several areas of the state. Brasileia is on the border with Bolivia, 232.4 km away from the capital Rio Branco. It has around 24 thousand inhabitants, with more than 3,000 students from different states in Brazil, who move to the city to study at Bolivian universities.

The river’s flood in 2024 led 19 of Acre’s 22 municipalities to enter a state of emergency. Among the most affected are Brasileia, Assis Brasil, Marechal Thaumaturgo, Santa Rosa do Purus and Jordão – the last two with 80% and 70% of the total populations made up of indigenous peoples, respectively, who were isolated. Three people died from drowning as a result of the flood and, in total, more than 120 people were injured.

For the state governor, Gladson Cameli (Progressives), the incident is directly associated with climate change. The manager highlights that the national, state and municipal Civil Defenses anticipated preventive actions, such as the construction of shelters and the distribution of food and cleaning and personal hygiene products, which minimized damage in several municipalities.

“If we leave Brasileia in the same place, in a year we will have the same problem. No structure will be authorized to be built in the lower part. We are developing, together with city halls and the federal government, medium and long-term emergency work. Until May, still we have forecast of heavy rains”, said Cameli.

The governor also declared that he is unable to access lines of credit, such as the Minha Casa, Minha vida program, due to problems with land regularization, as 80% of Acre’s population lives on Union land.

Villages in the region are submerged

The flood in Acre also caused devastation in several indigenous communities in the region, such as those located in the Rio Jordão Indigenous Land, which has more than 40 villages. Many of them were already facing difficulties in accessing them and are now completely isolated, which is even preventing the arrival of humanitarian aid.

According to indigenous artist Rita Hunikui, the only help that reached the Chico Curumin village, where she lives and has 30 families (around 150 people), was the distribution of basic food baskets, which is not enough to minimize the situation. She reported that, in addition to the loss of homes, crops and boats, indigenous people suffer from diseases and a lack of drinking water.

“Little by little we are returning to our homes to clean up and try to rescue some things. Many indigenous families lost everything they fought to have. Now, after the flood, we are suffering from various illnesses, such as diarrhea, fever and vomiting. We are also suffering from the lack of water supply in several places in Jordan”, he reports.