Joaquim runs restlessly among toys strewn on the floor of a classroom in Canoas, in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. But today is not a school day. Joaquim is not a student here. All the desks are stacked to the side to make way for mattresses, turning a classroom into a shelter for people displaced by floods.
This space previously used by students is now occupied by whole families. And there are many of them, housed in makeshift accommodations after torrential rains in April flooded whole cities and left hundreds of thousands of people without shelter.
“We had no idea of how big this tragedy would be,” said Ana Célia Alves, who now lives in the Canoas’ school-turned-shelter after being rescued by a neighbor with a rowboat. “Suddenly, it was all dark. The lights were out and then we started to realize this flood wasn’t like anything we had seen before. We started receiving messages on the phone, warning us that we had to escape because everything would be flooded.”
180,000 out of 350,000 Canoas residents forced to seek shelter
A team of doctors, nurses, psychologists, and health promoters with Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières(MSF) is providing medical and mental health assistance to the approximately 400 people now sheltering at the Paulo Freire Municipal School. The place has been receiving people from neighborhoods throughout Canoas, which is the state’s third most populous city. Of its 350,000 inhabitants, 180,000 Canoas residents had to leave their homes.
“We are trying to reach the people who are most vulnerable and places where there are no health professionals available,” said Alessandra Luz, an MSF emergency coordinator. “In emergency settings, health needs can change rapidly. It’s essential to understand where we can be most helpful, without duplicating efforts,” she explained.
Higher needs of vulnerable groups
It’s important to assist patients with chronic conditions, because many have had to stop their treatment or lost their medications in the flood. “The population in the shelters is very diverse, but one thing that stands out is the high number of elderly people who take controlled medication,” said Mônica Carvalho, an MSF doctor working at the shelter.
“Another focus has been sharing information about the symptoms of leptospirosis [a bacterial infection spread through contaminated water], and the prevention of respiratory diseases that may become more serious with the arrival of cold weather,” she stressed. The condition can be lethal if it’s not quickly treated.
Maria do Carmo de Andrade, 78, and her son, Alexsandro de Andrade, were also seen by the Doctors Without Borders team. Alexsandro has pneumonia, which got worse because of the cold. They were both rescued from the window of their home’s second floor after waiting for more than two days. “My son tells me: ‘Mother, get real, we lost everything,’” said Maria. “But I am very strong. I try to relax a bit and make jokes with him. The truth is, we will have to get up on our feet again.”
