The governor of Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite, announced on Thursday (16/05) the opening of a call for civil police officers and retired military firefighters. The reinforcement in personnel will be on an emergency and temporary basis and will be used in the regions most affected by recent climate events. The state has been facing floods for the last two weeks. Since the start of the calamity, security forces have arrested 103 people.
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260 Police Officers Called
260 civil police officers will be called between the 16 and 20 May. To reinforce security structures at this critical moment, as was also done with the Military Brigade, incorporating police officers who had gone to reserve into the activity. In the case of firefighters, 100 firefighters will be called to provide full force, especially in the regions most affected by recent weather events.
The government of Rio Grande do Sul had already integrated around 300 reserve military police officers, who are working to secure shelters serving flood victims. In total, more than a thousand vacancies were opened, but they were not filled.
Boat Robbery
The Rio Grande do Sul Civil Police began receiving information that criminals were stealing boats, fuel, and jet skis intending to transport drugs from flooded areas, in addition to carrying out thefts in abandoned houses. The suspicions were confirmed when agents seized eleven kilos of cocaine stored in a cooler in a flooded area of Canoas, last Thursday (09).
In the north of Porto Alegre, the Civil Police also located a type of “storage center” for objects stolen from flooded homes and businesses. There were electronics, household appliances, perfumes, and clothes on site. Two lootings were also recorded in a supermarket and an electronics factory, in Eldorado do Sul.
Federal police
The Federal Police also assumed the role of an overt force in this situation. At a roadblock on the BR-116 highway, in Eldorado do Sul, PF agents intercepted a 124-kilogram load of skunk that was inside a car. This is the largest shipment of this type of drug confiscated in the state — generally, skunk seizures are around 10 and 20 kilos.
Prisoners
Since the beginning of the public calamity, there have been 78 arrests for crimes related to the floods, of which 30 were in shelters.
Analysis:
The government’s response to the public calamity caused by the floods in Rio Grande do Sul has been comprehensive and multidimensional, with an emphasis on mobilizing additional resources to strengthen security forces in the face of the challenges faced. The decision to temporarily incorporate retired police officers aims to increase the number of personnel available to deal with public safety during floods, especially in the most affected areas. This reinforcement is crucial to guarantee the safety of vulnerable communities and prevent criminal actions.
However, according to investigations, criminals saw the floods as an opportunity to transport drugs across the state, taking advantage of the authorities’ focus on rescue missions and the security of the affected areas. This situation highlights the importance of a rapid and coordinated response from security forces to address not only the immediate challenges of flooding but also to combat criminal activities that may emerge amid the crisis.
