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"The government wants to forcefully remove the residents living in danger, and that is understandable," said Leandro Ribeiro, another slum resident. "But where are we supposed to go? Some people have been living here for 30 years. This is their home." Mayor Eduardo Paes said he was taking a tougher stand on forced relocations. He announced that 1,500 families were going to be removed from their homes on Pleasure Hill and in Rocinha, one of Latin America's largest slums. "I don't want to spend next summer sleepless, worrying if the rains are going to kill somebody," he told reporters, without saying when the relocations would occur. Rio was in chaos after the record rains this week. Trees and power lines were knocked down, enormous craters were carved in streets, wastewater flowed down to the city's white sand beaches and it was nearly impossible to get anywhere in the city of 6 million people. In Rocinha, officials said 16 inches (41 centimeters) of rain had fallen so far this month
-- three times the amount normally expected for all of April. Similar figures were seen across Rio's metropolitan area. The Rio state Civil Defense department said at least 11,000 people were forced from their homes. Officials said potential mudslides threatened at least 10,000 houses in the city. Rio de Janeiro state Gov. Sergio Cabral declared a three-day mourning period, and children were kept from schools Wednesday for a second straight day.
[Associated
Press;
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