The bluish front door opens a little ponderously.

An elderly gentleman appears who is up to his neck in the truest sense of the word.

Volunteers came by boat to rescue him from the flooded home in the Brazilian city of Itabuna.

The man holds out his right hand to them, and in it he holds what is left to him: his wallet with a few documents.

A video of this scene is shared widely on social media.

It's just one of many images of a natural disaster.

Tim Niendorf

Political Editor.

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Brazil is currently experiencing the worst floods in more than 30 years.

The state of Bahia in the northeast of the country is affected.

So far, there has been talk of at least 20 dead and 358 injured, and 30,000 Brazilians lost their homes in a moment.

“Unfortunately we are experiencing the greatest catastrophe in the history of Bahia, but I have a lot of trust in God and believe in the strength of the people in Bahia.

We will rebuild these places and overcome this difficult moment, ”said Rui Costa, the state governor.

Meteorologists, writes the Brazilian newspaper "Folha de S. Paulo", attributed the recent heavy rains in Bahia to the La Niña weather phenomenon and to increased temperatures in the Atlantic.

Thunderstorms are common at this time of year, but not with such intensity and duration as currently.

According to forecasts, the storms should continue in the next few days.

They didn't own much before

Many indigenous people have also lost their homes. It is reported that they are now short of food. The resident of one village reported to “Folha de S. Paulo” that the indigenous people were left with what little they had left. Yet they didn't have much before. “Because of the rain, people can no longer go to work. The situation is very critical. ”The flood victims deserved more help and attention. "We will be forgotten." Another Brazilian woman said in similar words to the newspaper "O Globo": "Here in southern Bahia the world is going to end and nobody sees us."

Governor Costa promised to mobilize everything that was possible. João Roma, a minister under the right-wing nationalist President Jair Bolsonaro, flew over the disaster area. He wrote on Twitter that it is now a matter of saving lives and putting political differences aside. "We know that there are different political positions, but the population asks for help, and whoever asks for help doesn't want to know where the help comes from." Bolsonaro had also flown over southern Bahia some time ago and promised money for him Reconstruction. He wrote on Twitter on Tuesday that he had initiated loans worth 200 million reais (the equivalent of more than 30 million euros) to restore roads in the regions hardest hit by the rains.

Bolsonaro's popularity ratings have plummeted since the pandemic.

The natural disaster occurs less than a year before the next presidential election, in which Bolsonaro must fear losing his office.

The former left-wing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has positioned himself.

He also wanted to demonstrate his ability to act and wrote on Twitter that he had called the governor of Bahia.

The governor is close to Lula's party.