© Javier Etxezarreta/EPA The increasing frequency of storms is hindering the beaches’ ability to recuperate, leading to erosion along stretches of the shoreline at Copacabana beach and others.
Local traders lament collapse in business from storm surge amid growing concern that city's sea defences are ill-equipped to copeScientists in Rio de Janeiro have warned that the city's sea defences may not be able to cope with the effects of climate change after a record storm surge swamped beaches, dumping hundreds of tonnes of sand across nearby roads and buildings.
Waves of almost four metres in the weekend storm left beach flags fluttering in tatters, forced the closure of deckchair-rental gazebos, and inundated coconut-and-beer kiosks with grit and sea water.
Tourists who had expected to bask in the glorious sunshine that is normal at the start of the southern hemisphere summer walked ponderously along a shoreline that is only slowly recovering from the unseasonal buffeting, while local traders lamented the collapse in business.
"This is the worst I have seen in the 20 years since I started working here," said Dominique Souza as he surveyed the aftermath of the storm surge at Post 11 in Leblon: giant heaps of sand, cracked pavements and deluged public toilets. He estimated a more than 80% fall in sales over the past few days at his
baraca (beach stall) that sells cold drinks and rents parasols.
Although he expects business to pick up as soon as the weather improves, climate scientists are debating whether wave-slamming on this scale poses an increasing threat to Rio's beach economy, which is estimated to be worth 2bn reais (£509m/$622m) a year and directly and indirectly employs more than 230,000 people.
In the 1990s, storm surge disruptions occurred roughly once a year, but since 2010 they have hit Rio four or five times as frequently. There have already been four this year, including two of the biggest ever seen. In April, two people were killed when a 50-metre stretch of the Tim Maia bike path was washed away just months after it was built.
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