• Tracking
• post

Landslide – Brazil:

Torrential rains reaching as much as 5 inches (126 mm) per hour hit the city of Petropolis on February 15. With no way to absorb that much water, the ground quickly became over-saturated, causing overland flooding and several catastrophic landslides. Violent mud streams flowed down into surrounding houses, overtaking everything in their path and damaging almost 100 homes. As of Feb. 21, 171 people were confirmed dead as rescue officials worked with hand tools and buckets to search for more than 120 people still missing, with little hope of anyone being found alive.

For complete details on how you can help, please see our 2022 Brazil Mudslides Disaster Profile.

Argentina – Wildfires:

Drought and extreme heat brought on by La Niña have led to the destruction of more than 800,000 acres of land in Corrientes, an environmentally sensitive area of Argentina. The wildfire damage equals nearly 10% of land in the province. Estimates of damage exceed $340 million, and there will be long-term impacts due to the loss of crops such as Yerba Maté, which takes five years to produce.

For complete details on how you can help, please see our 2022 Corrientes, Argentine Wildfires Disaster Profile.

Winter Storms – Europe:

A series of storms battered Europe over the past week, wreaking havoc on travel, causing power outages and flooding several parts of the continent. At least 15 people died as multiple countries were battered by storms Ylenia (Dudley), Zeynep (Eunice) and Antonia (Franklin).

Tropical Storm – Madagascar:

Yet another tropical storm struck the island country of Madagascar, just off the eastern coast of Africa, on Feb. 15. At least six people died as a result of the storm, with floodwaters damaging homes, bridges and other infrastructure across the country. The brutal battering is likely to continue this coming week as a fourth storm – Emnati – is expected to make landfall on Feb. 22.

Earthquake – Guatemala:

A 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck near the western coast of the Central American country on Feb. 16. The epicenter was located close to Nueva Concepcion at a depth of almost 52 miles (84 km), helping to minimize the damage from this tremor. While the earthquake did cause at least one major landslide, no deaths are directly linked to damage from either the earthquake or the landslide – though three people died of heart attacks that are being linked to the incident.