Rio de Janeiro mayor considers installing electronic storm drains against floods

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Marcelo Crivella, mayor of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, said Monday that the administration is considering installing electronic-controlled storm sewers against floods which plague the city every summer.

Crivella said the major problem about floods in Rio is the excess of garbage blocking the drains, and suggested the installation of 2,000 electronic sensors in sewer drains to control the passage of detritus.

The mayor did not clarify how the installation would be carried out and where necessary resources would come from.

In his first year of administration, Crivella reduced the budget for the sewage system's cleaning. According to him, it was due to the financial problems in the city. However, local media recently reported high expenditures in publicity during Crivella's administration.

Luiz Paulo, an opposition state representative, criticized the measure and told local daily O Globo that the idea is merely a guess of the mayor.

The representative, who is a civil engineer, said the drainage system in the city is insufficient and old, and that installation of the electronic system will only serve to alert about the blockade with no teams to make the cleaning.

In February, the city had some of the worst floods in recent times. On Feb. 14 and Feb. 15, some areas in the city registered 150 percent of the amount of rain expected for the entire month. Four people died and hundreds had to leave their homes. < A week later, another storm caused significant damage in the city. In some areas, electricity services had not even been re-established after the first storm. Enditem