Sao Paulo, Brazil - August 26, 2024

The wildfires that ravaged Brazil's southeastern state of Sao Paulo have been largely brought under control, thanks to the joint efforts of the army and firefighting departments, local authorities said on Monday.

The devastating wildfires that have ripped through the countryside of Sao Paulo are expected to result in the economic loss exceeding one billion reals within just three days, Governor of Sao Paulo state Tarcisio de Freitas said on Monday.

More than 30,000 hectares of vegetation have been destroyed in the blazes, along with significant damage to homes and the loss of numerous livestock, the governor said.

The disaster not only inflicts severe damage to the environment, but also poses threat to agriculture and transportation infrastructure

The state government had announced an aid plan worth 10 million reals to help the wildfire-affected agricultural producers.

The repercussions of the wildfires were even felt in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia, where skies were cloaked in smoke from Sunday to Monday, leading to reduced visibility and a marked deterioration in air quality.

Officials from the Sao Paulo State Civil Defense said that a cold front is expected to sweep through the region this week, offering respite by mitigating the prevailing dry weather conditions and aiding in wildfire suppression.

However, as the week progresses, humidity levels are forecasted to decline once more from Thursday onwards, heightening the risk of wildfires re-emerging, cautioned the Sao Paulo State Civil Defense.

Shotlist:
Sao Paulo, Brazil - Aug 26, 2024:
1. Various of employees of Sao Paulo State Civil Defense at work;
2. Roberto Farina Filho, captain, Sao Paulo State Civil Defense, introducing to reporter about wildfires;
3. Various of screens showing wildfires information;
4. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Roberto Farina Filho, captain, Sao Paulo State Civil Defense (ending with shot 5):
"We entered this week with a cold front coming here in the state of Sao Paulo. This cold front will make it possible to drop temperatures and bring relative humidity as well, which will ease dry condition we had before.";
5. Screen showing wildfires information;
6. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Suely Araujo, former president, Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA):
"The sequent wildfires are related to climate change, because we are having increasingly intense dry seasons, which have affected many states in the Amazon region, and affected the Matogrossense Pantanal.";
FILE: Manaus, Brazil - Nov 3, 2023
7. Aerial shot of cityscape, river;
8. Various of shoreline at low tide.

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