An Italian government plane has landed at Canoas Air Base in Brazil's flood- ravaged Rio Grande do Sul state with a cargo of humanitarian aid on board, the embassy tweeted on Thursday.
The aid has been sent at the request of foreign minister Antonio Tajani and Italy's ambassador Alessandro Cortese met the plane, according to the tweet.
The flight airlifted around 25 tonnes of essential items, including health kits, tents, electricity generators and water sterilising equipment, according to a foreign ministry statement.
The government is guaranteeing medical care, drugs and emergency treatment in hospital and other facilities for at least 100,000 people for a period of three months, the statement said.
Authorities in Rio Grande do Sul have confirmed over 50 cases of the waterborne leptospirosis disease and are probing up to 800 suspected cases after the region experienced unprecedented rainfall and floods in April and May.
Over 165 were killed in the catastrophic flooding and many more are still missing, while more than 2.3 million Brazilians across Rio Grande do Sul have been affected. At least 581,000 are homeless while 55,000 have received temporary accommodation, according to local officials.
Many cities in Rio Grande do Su are still underwater and authorities fear more cases of leptospirosis, whose symptoms include fever, muscle ache, nausea and vomiting. Flood water may mix with sewage, leading to the transmission of diseases like leptospirosis and hepatitis A.
