Death toll from south Brazil's storms reaches 90

SAO PAULO -- Five more people were killed by storms ravaging south Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 90, the state's civil defense agency said Tuesday.

In the state bordering Uruguay and Argentina, record rainfall, flooding and mudslides have left 132 people missing and 361 injured, and forced over 200,000 residents to evacuate from homes over the past eight days.

Over 1.4 million people in 388 of the state's 497 towns, including the capital city Porto Alegre, were affected by the disaster, according to the agency.

More than 85 percent of the city's population has lost access to potable water, leading authorities to ration the supply.

Classes have been suspended statewide, as 790 schools were affected by flooding, 388 sustained damage and another 52 are serving to shelter those evacuated.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has visited the disaster sites and pledged federal aid.

A series of climatic phenomena have caused rain-bearing clouds to gather and remain over half of the state, which was hit by nine extratropical cyclones in 2023.