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In Amazonas, the state’s 62 municipalities remain in an emergency situation due to the drought, affecting 598 thousand people, according to the latest bulletin released by Civil Defense. Olívio Bahia, meteorologist at the National Institute of Meteorology, points out that it could take months for the Amazon Region to recover from the drought.
“For example, even though it’s raining well today, it won’t fill the river. The drought lasts a good period. Can you imagine the level of the rivers in the Amazon, they are mega rivers. For it to be dry it is because, most likely, in one, two or three summers there may have been little rain, especially in the headwaters of the rivers”, explains the meteorologist.
The weather forecast for this Friday (10) and Saturday (11) indicates the presence of many clouds and there is the possibility of rain showers for the entire Amazon. The information is from the National Institute of Meteorology.
According to Bahia, the volume of rain could be enough to flood another location, but not an area as large as the Amazon. “So we can have a good week of rain, but it won’t change the situation. It rains, but the river level doesn’t rise for navigation, for example,” he adds.
According to the 47th Hydrological Monitoring Bulletin of the Amazon Basin, released by the Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB), river levels in the Amazon Basin began to stabilize in some seasons, but levels still remain low for the period.
River levels
The latest data released by the Civil Defense of Amazonas this Tuesday (7) shows that:
- In Manaus, the level of the Negro channel is 13.22 meters.
- In Beruri, the level of the Purus channel is 4.79 meters.
- In Nova Olinda do Norte, the level of the Madeira channel is 6.21 meters.
- In Guajará, the level of the Juruá channel is 5.11 meters.
- In Parintins, the level of the Lower Amazonas trough is 2.12 meters.
- In Itacoatiara, the level of the Middle Amazon trough is 0.67 meters.
- In Careiro da Várzea, the level of the Baixo Solimões gutter is 0.54 meters.
- In Fonte Boa, the level of the Médio Solimões channel is 10.44 meters.
- In Tabatinga, the level of the Alto Solimões gutter is 0.38 meters.
See the Amazon rivers:
According to the SGB, the drop in river levels can have several effects in the region: it affects water supply, navigation, soil stability due to landslides caused by the rapid decrease in water, and ecological processes, leading to death of fish due to limited swimming space, increased pollution and high water temperatures.
Read more:
Drought in the Amazon region: platform allows real-time monitoring of water volume in rivers
Drought in Amazonas: 10 cities receive almost R$12 million to serve the population
Report: Nathália Ramos Guimarães
Edition: Zildenor Dourado
Zildenor Dourado has a degree in Journalism and Literature/Portuguese from the University of Brasília. He is a specialist in Legislative Communication, from Unilegis, of the Federal Senate. He worked as a reporter and editor for the newspapers Tribuna da Bahia, A Tarde and Jornal de Brasília. in addition to several union press vehicles. He worked as a public servant for the Federal Legislative Chamber, where he was a reporter, editor and head of the Publicity and Press Relations Section.
