Mark de Souza: To get to his doctor’s appointment, Paulo Roberto Heinek crossed a floating pedestrian crossing – the only way to enter the neighboring city after floods in southern Brazil helped destroy the bridge a month ago.
“Everything is more difficult now, but we have to keep going,” said the 54-year-old father of three, who is recovering from a recent operation.
Narrow rudders balanced on canoe-style rafts are typically used by the military during skirmishes after bombing bridges.
Important new foundations are dangerous, and the ongoing bad weather has caused damage and forced the authorities to build a new one.
“People should resume their work soon,” said Col. Rafael Farias, 46, next to the bridge over the Forqueta River in Marques de Souza.
Residents must cross in single file wearing bright orange life jackets issued by soldiers stationed on both sides of the river.
Juliani Steffer, 36, a clothing salesman, takes a breather after walking through Travesseiro with a bag full of goods in Marques de Souza.
“People lost a lot of clothes. I went to their houses because they couldn’t drive to my store,” she said.
