After the storm, BH dawns with a housing complex collapsing and 1,700 properties still without power

Part of a housing complex collapsed in the early hours of this Friday (6), in the Nazaré neighborhood, in the Northeast Region of Belo Horizonte, after heavy rains that hit the capital and cities in the Metropolitan Region on Thursday (5). According to the Fire Department, the place is home to 40 residents and 32 of them need shelter from the City of Belo Horizonte (PBH).

Maria do Rosário Antunes is a neighbor of the housing complex. He was at home sleeping when he heard the bangs.

"It was loud, it was horrible! I jumped out of bed, a loud noise. Suddenly, all I could see was that white cloud of dust, that movement, people coming out onto the street. It was really sad," said Maria do Rosário.

The collapse occurred at Rua Benjamin Fraga, number 31. Firefighters were called at around 12:20 am. According to the corporation, the property has three floors and the first floor collapsed.

There were no victims. However, firefighters identified a risk of other floors falling onto nearby houses. After the service, the property was placed in the care of the Military Police and Civil Defense.

Civil Defense agents and military police remained on site throughout the night to support residents. g1 contacted Belo Horizonte City Hall to find out where the families will be sent and is awaiting a response.

The storm in BH and the region

The collapse occurs after a storm caused a series of disturbances in Belo Horizonte and the Metropolitan Region on Thursday. In the capital, there were floods, fallen trees and road closures, including records on avenues Vilarinho, Heráclito Mourão de Miranda and Francisco Sá. There were also incidents related to rain in Contagem, Santa Luzia and Confins. Heavy rain hits regions of Belo Horizonte this Thursday.

1,700 properties still without power

This Friday morning, around 1,700 consumer units remained without power in Belo Horizonte, according to a new update from Cemig. The number corresponds to approximately 0.17% of the company's customers in the capital. In Minas Gerais, there are around 27 thousand units without supply.

According to Cemig, teams work uninterruptedly to respond to incidents, and the system is expected to gradually return to normal throughout this Friday.

Shortly after Thursday's storm, around 26,900 properties lost power in Belo Horizonte alone, equivalent to approximately 2.7% of the company's customers in the capital.

Cemig advises customers who are still without power to register the interruption by calling 116 or using the Cemig Atende app so that a team can be directed to the location.

Geological risk alert

The Civil Defense of Belo Horizonte maintains a strong geological risk alert until next Monday (9). The agency also reported that it was called to 14 incidents related to the storm that hit the city on Thursday (5).

The agency's guidance is that residents of Belo Horizonte can follow alerts about heavy rain, hail, storms, windstorms, flooding and the risk of landslides through the Civil Defense public channel on WhatsApp.

It is also possible to receive notifications via SMS. To register for free, simply send a text message with the street's zip code to the number 40199. The user will then receive a confirmation.

In addition, alerts are published on official Civil Defense profiles on social media.