Brazil Mudslide Disaster: Death Toll Climbs to More Than 200 as More Bodies Retrieved in Petropolis

The death toll from floods and mudslides that swept through the mountain city of Petropolis in Brazil has surpassed 200, authorities said on Wednesday.

Authorities continue to search and recover bodies more than a week after the torrential rain. Rio de Janeiro police said a total of 204 bodies had already been recovered, and 188 had been identified as of Wednesday.

Rescue workers and residents searching for their missing relatives continued to dig through mountains of mud and rubble that mainly hit poor hillside communities, which Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro said looked like it had been through a "war."

According to CNA, the number of missing people currently stands at around 51. However, the number is expected to decrease as bodies are identified and families reunited.

After dumping a month's worth of rain in a few hours that started February 15, more than 850 people were being housed in emergency shelters as their homes were damaged or destroyed.

Police said 33 children were among those killed in the February 15 deluge that turned streets in the picturesque tourist town north of Rio de Janeiro into violent rivers, with the water taking cars, trees, and soil along with it, Al Jazeera reported.

The disaster is now among the deadliest in the Imperial City's history. It served as a bitter reminder of 2011 for many Petropolis residents, as similar mudslides killed more than 900 people in the region, making it the worst natural disaster in Brazil's history.

Residents Continue to Search for Missing Loved Ones in Brazil's Petropolis City

Standing on the mountain of mud and wreckage that used to be his sister's house, Anderson Mota Barreiros, 37, joined the small army of volunteers digging through the sludge for their missing loved ones after fatal landslides struck.

Barreiros, who searched in the poor hillside neighborhood of Alto da Serra where the huge landslide engulfed dozens of houses, claimed that her sister is still missing together with her own family.

As the tragedy unfolded, many residents ran into the floodwaters and debris and looked for their family, friends, and neighbors.

Among the collapsed structures in the Morro da Oficina region, a part of Alto da Serra was Alexandro Conde's screen printing workshop, where his 18-year-old son Kaique, his brother Ivan, and his close friend Thiago were working.

"When I arrived, I saw this. Then it was just a scream of pain because I knew that my son and my brother were there," Conde told the Associated Press.

There is bitter anger for many residents in Alto da Serra over the tragedy and the length of the time it takes for official rescue operations to locate the missing persons.

Officials are waging a huge clean-up operation to clear the mud, rubble, and stranded vehicles scattered around Petropolis, the city of 300,000 people that was the 19th-century summer capital of the Brazilian empire.

Pope Francis Expressed Sorrows for Landslide Victims in Brazil

On Sunday, Pope Francis conveyed his condolences and prayed for the repose of the deceased following his Angelus prayer at Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican.

The Pope expressed his solidarity with those affected by natural disasters recently, mentioning Petropolis and Madagascar, ravaged by a series of cyclones.

"May the Lord receive the victims in his peace, console their relatives and support those who come to their aid," the Pope said.

At least 236 individuals have died in severe storms in Brazil in the past three months. According to experts, climate change increases the frequency and intensifies extreme rainfall.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Jess Smith

WATCH: Bolsonaro Surveys Damage as Brazil Mudslides Death Toll Climbs - From Al Jazeera English