Water is the driving force of all nature, and is required for agriculture, industry, transport, energy and for personal hygiene and drinking. Without access to safe drinking water the human population on earth would die out.
As the global population begins to soar and the effects of climate change and global warming are felt in various regions all over the world, accessible supplies of fresh water are becoming a real problem to many, including the citizens of various towns in Brazil, which is experiencing its worst drought in over 80 years.
Submerged Brazilian Town Reappears After 45 Years
The drought in the Brazilian city of São Paulo has got so bad that residents of the city once known as the City of Drizzle residents actually began drilling through basement floors and car parks to try to reach groundwater.
Residents have begun hoarding water in the face of water restrictions, dry reservoirs and pinched faucets. Authorities are concerned that there will be anarchy in this city of eleven million. Brazil is home to roughly 12% of the world’s fresh water, yet millions of residents are going without water for days on end.
Three consecutive years of record low rainfall has meant that the reservoirs have not been refilled and now sit at around 27% while other reservoirs that may not be as low are badly polluted and the water is unfit for human use. Hospitals are also struggling with the water shortage and some have had to cut short dialyses treatment for kidney patients.
People are filling bucket with the little bit of rainwater that there is to use in their bathrooms and for home cleaning purposes, and in February builders drilled into one of the numerous rivers running underneath the city to open a water well, but this did not last long.
São Paulo had some heavy rains in February, which did not alleviate the water shortage but actually made things worse because they caused flooding and mudslides in certain areas, destroying many homes.
Cars that police suspect were stolen then dumped in the lake behind the Jaguari dam have begun to reappear on dry ground, and a town near to São Paulo that had been submerged by the government as part of the plan to dam the Jaguari River in 1969 has started to re-emerge with many of its structures such as the main street and square and the church still being recognisable even after almost half a century under water.
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