Communities dependent on the Amazon rainforest's waterways are stranded without supply of fuel, food or filtered water. Dozens of river dolphins perished and washed up on shore. And thousands of lifeless fish float on the water's surface.
These are just the first grim visions of extreme drought sweeping across Brazil's Amazon. The historically low water levels have affected hundreds of thousands of people and wildlife and, with experts predicting the drought could last until early 2024, the problems stand to intensify.
Eight Brazilian states recorded the lowest rainfall in the period from July to September in over 40 years, according to CEMADEN, Brazil's disaster warning center. The drought has affected most of the main rivers in the Amazon, the world's largest basin, which accounts for 20% of the planet's fresh water.
Dry spells are part of the Amazon's cyclical weather pattern, with lighter rainfall from May to October for most of the rainforest. That already low rainfall is being further reduced this year by two climate phenomena: El Nino - the natural warming of surface waters in the Equatorial Pacific region - and the warming of northern tropical Atlantic Ocean waters, said Ana Paula Cunha, a CEMADEN researcher.
The Madeira's level at Porto Velho is the lowest since measurements began in 1967. Nearby, Brazil's fourth-largest hydroelectric dam, Santo Antonio plant, halted operations this week due to the lack of water. It's the first time that happened since it opened in 2012. Brazil's government has created a task force to coordinate a response. Ministers of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government visited Manaus on Tuesday. Vice President Geraldo Alckmin promised food, drinking water and fuel to isolated communities, and said payments of the Bolsa Familia welfare program would be made in advance. Dredging on stretches of two rivers - Solimoes and Madeira - is in the works to improve navigability.
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