BRAZIL SUFFERS FLOODING AS AMAZON RIVERS OVERFLOW

The rivers around Brazil's Amazon metropolis of Manaus have reached record levels and caused severe flooding after heavy rain, Martina Farmbauer reported for Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa).

The Rio Negro, which flows into the Amazon near Manaus, recorded its highest water level since 1902 at 29.98 meters, news site G1 reported on Tuesday. The river rose to 29.97 meters in major flooding in 2012.

The level designated as "serious flooding" is 29 meters, a threshold which was already crossed in April according to the newspaper Folha de S Paulo. The water level this time is expected to exceed 30 meters, according to the Geological Service of Brazil

More than 24,000 families and 15 districts of Manaus were affected and many had to leave their homes, according to G1. More than 9,000 meters of wooden bridges - known as marombas - were built in the hardest-hit areas.

Photos showed people walking over them and some took pictures of themselves with the record floodwaters.

Parts of the port area and the historic center of Manaus were underwater. Water also entered stores and flooded the main market.

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