Rains pound Brazil’s Rio state and at least 8 die

Rio de Janeiro: Heavy rains and landslides have killed at least eight people, with eight more missing, firefighters in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro state said Saturday.

Heavy rains across the state began on Thursday night and continued through Saturday morning, with houses and at times entire neighborhoods flooding.

Firefighters confirmed the deaths of five people in the city of Angra dos Reis, about a three-hour drive from Rio de Janeiro city, and three more deaths in the nearby municipalities of Paraty and Mesquita. At least 8 people were still missing.

The landslides brought back grim memories for Rio. Less than two months ago, more than 200 people were killed in landslides in Petropolis, a mountainous region north of Rio. Torrential storms this year also wreaked havoc in Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais states.