Heavy Rains at Rio de Janeiro: Risk Monitoring

Abstract

After the disaster in 2010, in which 67 people died, all victims of hillside sliding in Rio de Janeiro, the Geo Rio Foundation - office from the City Hall dedicated to questions related to hillsides - has elaborated a geologic-geotechnical mapping of risk in 196 communities (slums) at the city and there were identified areas of high, medium and low risk. Based on this research, an Alarm System of Sirens, together with a Monitoring System of Rain (pluviometers), was installed in 103 communities. At the Rio Operations Center a team of meteorologists work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, doing rain forecast and monitoring. A Meteorological Radar reaching 250km makes the forecast and 83 pluviometers installed at the communities monitor the rain. If the rain reaches a critical level, what can cause accidents, the sirens are activated to warn the population about the risk of sliding and residents are oriented to move to safer places. The Municipal Civil Defense has identified places which can temporarily shelter these residents in the period of heavy rains. Therefore, indoor courts, residents’ associations, churches, schools and other establishments located at or near the communities, are the support points for receiving these residents. Several Simulated Evacuation Exercises have been organized to train and adapt, in a concrete way and as close to reality as possible, the residents of the areas at risk for their evacuation in an emergency situation. These trainings are also a great opportunity of exercising and evaluating the work of the people involved in the activation of sirens and opening of the support points, as well as stimulating the participation of volunteers and increasing the risk perception of the residents. This way, and complementing with integrated, fast and efficient actions of answer and reconstruction, the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro can become a Resilient City, to the heavy rains and to the disasters, and therewith, gain capacity to face, adapt and absorb the impacts of these types of occurrences and restore the normality as soon as it is possible.