JAMAPARA, Brazil (AP) -- A mudslide caused by two days of downpours has killed at least 13 people in a small town in southeastern Brazil, and another 11 are listed as missing, the head of the Rio de Janeiro state civil defense department said Tuesday.
Among the missing are five members of a family whose car was caught in the mudslide as they were trying to get away from the area. Floods elsewhere in the state have forced more than 30,000 people to flee their homes.
In neighboring Minas Gerais state, officials say more than 14,000 people have left their homes, and 15 have died in floodwaters or mudslides.
The southern hemisphere summer, which starts in late December, is Brazil's rainy season. It frequently brings devastation to communities perched on hillsides or near riverbanks. Nearly 1,000 people died last year around this time when torrential rain unleashed avalanches of mud in Rio's mountains. (27 images)
Among the missing are five members of a family whose car was caught in the mudslide as they were trying to get away from the area. Floods elsewhere in the state have forced more than 30,000 people to flee their homes.
In neighboring Minas Gerais state, officials say more than 14,000 people have left their homes, and 15 have died in floodwaters or mudslides.
The southern hemisphere summer, which starts in late December, is Brazil's rainy season. It frequently brings devastation to communities perched on hillsides or near riverbanks. Nearly 1,000 people died last year around this time when torrential rain unleashed avalanches of mud in Rio's mountains. (27 images)
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Relatives of a family killed by a mudslide hug outside a church during a wake for victims in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. Sergio Carvalho, his wife Solange and their son Tiago were buried by a mudslide that killed at least 13 people. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Firefighters wait as they watch a bulldozer dig in search of several missing people after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue workers use an excavator to dig for people who went missing after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Machinery digs at the site of a mudslide in search of missing people in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Firefighters look at a destroyed car recovered after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
A firefighter looks out over the site of a mudslide during search efforts for missing people in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Photographs lay scattered in the rubble of a home destroyed by a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
A man salvages a queen-size mattress from his home after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Firefighters help mudslide victims recover some of their personal belongings from their homes in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rosilene de Almeida walks over a destroyed motorcycle as she retrieves personal belongings from her house after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
A man salvages an oven from his home after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Dirleni Lopes, left, and a friend salvage belongings from their homes after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Mudslide survivors salvage personal belongings in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Relatives carry the coffins of a family killed by a mudslide to the cemetery in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Relatives mourn during the funeral procession of a family killed by a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. Sergio Carvalho, his wife Solange and their son Tiago were buried by the mudslide. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Relatives mourn as people carry the coffins of their family members out of a church after a deadly mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Relatives of a family killed by a mudslide hug outside the church during the wake of the victims in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
People watch rescue efforts from a home after a mudslide in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Fatima Regina, right, looks at the site where her home was swept away by a mudslide that was triggered by heavy rains in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue workers recover the body of a mudslide victim in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel recover the body of a mudslide victim in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel carry away the body of a mudslide victim in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel carry the body of a mudslide victim in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel work at the site of a mudslide that killed at least eight people in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 9, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel work at the site of a mudslide that killed at least eight people in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 9, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Rescue personnel work at the site of a mudslide that killed at least eight people in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 9, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
Survivors of a mudslide that killed at least eight people look at rescue efforts in Jamapara, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 9, 2012. AP / Victor R. Caivano
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