Since last Thursday (2), 22 firefighters from the Bahia Military Fire Department (CBMB) have been working in the search and rescue operation for victims of the rains that hit Rio Grande do Sul. Until last Saturday (4), the Bahian team had already rescued around 170 people, including elderly people and children. Bahia firefighters also recovered four bodies.
On Sunday (5), Bahian fire teams worked in Galópolis, district of Caxias do Sul, searching for trapped people; and in Santa Lúcia do Piaí, rescuing isolated residents.
Bahia sent a team of military personnel and health professionals to assist in helping victims in RS/CBMB
The Bahian military is also working in a donation distribution center and first reception for the homeless and homeless. “We divided our military into three fronts, so that we could serve a greater number of citizens. Our work takes place in conjunction with other fire departments and other bodies, such as Civil Defense”, explained the general commander of the CBMB, Colonel Adson Marchesini.
The state government also informed that, if necessary, the Bahia Military Fire Department will send other teams to reinforce service to the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Health teams
The State Department of Health (Sesab) also sent doctors and nurses to assist in helping victims in the state. Among them is the sanitarian from the Strategic Information Center for Health Surveillance in Bahia, Edson Ribeiro Júnior, with experience in floods in Bahia, having already participated in actions in the West and Far South of the state.
“We go together with the Fire Department to support the teams in analyzing the health situation, observing the homeless, shelters. Ultimately, we will try to support, see what the needs are, get to know the scenario and make an assessment of risk”, he explains.
Edson Ribeiro Júnior, a public health professional with experience in helping flood victims, makes up the team of Bahians working in RS / Fernando Vivas/GOVBA
The public health professional also adds that the team’s concern is the mental health of the affected population. “It’s a situation that involves a lot of losses. So, mental health is also something to be assessed,” he added. Other points raised by the team are diseases that emerge in disasters, such as arboviruses (dengue, Chikungunya, etc.), leptospirosis, diarrheal and communicable diseases, in addition to the vaccination status.
Source: BdF Bahia
Editing: Gabriela Amorim
