40,000 people flee flooding, mudslides in Brazil

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Civil defence officials say floods and mudslides caused by heavy downpours have killed at least 20 people and forced more than 40,000 to leave their homes in southeastern Brazil.

The civil defence department of Minas Gerais state says on its Monday website that 14 people died there in floodwaters or mudslides. It says about 700 people were forced to seek shelter in public buildings or in the homes of friends and relatives.

The civil defence department in neighbouring Espirito Santo state says another six people were killed there and about 40,150 people were forced from their homes by mudslides and rivers overflowing their banks.