Cost to rebuild Brazil state after floods to be higher than initially thought, governor says

(Reuters) – The governor of Brazil’s southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul said on Friday that the costs of rebuilding the state after devastating floods in recent weeks will be “much higher” than the 19 billion reais ($3.72 billion) initially estimated.

Speaking at a press conference in state capital Porto Alegre, Governor Eduardo Leite estimated the state would lose some 14 billion reais in revenues due to the floods, which killed 154 people and left more than 540,000 displaced.

($1 = 5.1119 reais)

(Reporting by Fernando Cardoso and Eduardo Simoes; editing by Gabriel Araujo)