Reuters
Published Jul 30, 2021 11:28AM ET
Updated Jul 30, 2021 01:13PM ET
(Corrects name in paragraph 4 to Lemos instead of Memos)
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -As an unusual cold snap stuns residents of Rio de Janeiro, a Brazilian city famous for its sun, sand and sea, the city's homeless have been struggling to sleep through the chill.
"It's very cold. Even with two blankets and a quilt, I still felt horrible last night," Flávio, who is homeless, said.
A polar air mass has been traveling toward the country's center-south regions this week, bringing fast winds and rare snowfall to communities unfamiliar with low temperatures — and to street residents ill-equipped to handle them.
In Rio, Jeniffer Faria da Silva and Marlon Lemos Mollulo have been distributing warm food, blankets, clothes, shoes and bread to the city's street residents as part of a project they began a year and a half ago. Traveling through the city at night, they've been placing thermal liners on concrete, where dozens of the city's homeless sleep side by side to stay warm.
"There's a lot of suffering, especially in Rio where we aren't used to having these kinds of temperatures. We don't have the right infrastructure to cope with the cold, and some of these people also have pets," Silva said.
The polar air mass is slated to bring freezing temperatures to São Paulo and Minas Gerais, major producers of key commodities like sugar, citrus and coffee.
Temperatures in Rio are expected to drop to an unusual low of 9°C on Friday before gradually starting to warm up in August.
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.