After months of drought and the biggest fire in its history, the Pantanal recorded significant rains on Thursday (15). In Ibama's assessment, however, the amount is still insufficient to overcome all outbreaks.
Serra do Amolar, in the municipality of Corumbá (MS), was one of the regions that registered rain. A video obtained by Folha shows indigenous brigade members of the Terena people and residents of the region celebrating the end of the drought.
"It is a drizzle. It is not to say that it will put out the fire. I do not know if it will last until today or tomorrow," said resident Edilaine Arruda, 25, author of the video and responsible for the logistics of the brigades at the base of the NGO ECOA (Ecology and Action). "It had been so long that it hadn't rained that I can't even remember."
Considered the Pantanal's most preserved area, Amolar has registered some of the most critical hot spots in recent weeks. On Tuesday (13), strong winds mixed with soot caused a kind of sandstorm.
On the 5th, Arruda said that the fire almost hit her community. "It was horrible, desperate. It came very close to the houses. But we had the support of the Prevfogo brigade, with the help of the residents."
"We have reports of rain in almost the entire Pantanal. It rained in Amolar, it rained in the city of Corumbá, it rained in the Pantanal National Park. It is a good volume, but insufficient to extinguish all fires", said Alexandre Pereira, from Prevfogo / Ibama in Campo Grande (MS).
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon