World Tour: Cyclone aftermath in New Zealand

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: World Tour with WORLD’s Africa reporter, Onize Ohikere.

ONIZE OHIKERE, REPORTER: Brazil flooding — We begin today’s roundup in Brazil.

AUDIO: [Tree felling]

Rescue workers are clearing felled trees and picking up stranded residents from flood-hit regions of Sao Paulo state after torrential rainfall over the weekend.

The rain triggered flooding and landslides that have engulfed homes and left more than 200 people homeless.

More than 40 people have died, and dozens are still missing. Authorities expect the toll to rise.

Many of the deaths came from the hard-hit city of Sao Sebastiao.

AUDIO: [Mud scraping]

Residents there have started clearing out thick mud from their homes.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva flew over the region on Monday.

SILVA: [Speaking Portuguese]

He called on Brazilians to pray for the victims and for less rainfall to aid recovery efforts. Officials have canceled annual Carnival celebrations throughout the area. The festival marks five days of celebration before Lent begins today.

New Zealand cyclone — Next, to another storm in New Zealand.

Authorities there are still responding to the aftermath of last week’s cyclone. The death toll has risen to 11 after Cyclone Gabrielle brought widespread flooding, landslides, and power outages.

On Monday, New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins extended a state of emergency by seven days.

HIPKINS: This allows us to continue coordinating the response at a national level ensuring those areas receive the resources that they require.

Tens of thousands of customers are still without power, while authorities continue to track down missing people.

One property owner described the storm as a complete disaster.

AUDIO: Have a look around guys, it's a write-off, 16 years of growing vines and it's all gone

Authorities have compared the extent of the damage to another cyclone that drenched New Zealand in 1988.

Bangladesh protests — Next, to Bangladesh.

AUDIO: [Protest]

Journalists from the country’s main opposition newspaper on Monday held up banners and marched across the streets of the capital city of Dhaka.

They are protesting a government order that stops the newspaper from operating.

District authorities first ordered the shutdown in December, saying the newspaper violated the country’s printing and publication laws.

The journalists appealed to the Press Council, but it rejected their request on Sunday.

AUDIO: [Protesters chanting]

Many see the move as part of a larger crackdown on media freedom. Last month, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government ordered the closure of 191 websites accused of publishing reports critical of the government.

Bulgaria migrants — We head over to Bulgaria.

Authorities are searching for human traffickers after finding 18 migrants dead inside an abandoned truck.

AUDIO: [Security response]

Authorities found the truck 12 miles northeast of Bulgaria’s capital of Sofia. They said the migrants suffocated to death inside a secret compartment under a load of lumber. Thirty-four others survived.

Bulgaria has stepped up patrols along its 161-mile border fence with Turkey as more and more migrants arrive. Some asylum-seekers have accused border agents of abuse, saying they have been stripped, pushed back, and beaten.

Ghana earthquake victim — We wrap up today in Ghana’s capital of Accra.

AUDIO: [Trumpet march]

Mourners dressed in black welcomed the flag-draped casket of a Ghanaian international footballer who died in the Turkey-Syria earthquake earlier this month.

Responders found the body of the 31-year-old Christian Atsu in the rubble of a 12-story building in Turkey’s Hatay province.

Atsu previously played for English Premier League teams such as Chelsea and Newcastle United. He signed with the Turkish Hatayspor football club last year.

Ghanaian Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia spoke with mourners at the international airport.

BAWUMIA: And we anxiously, nervously prayed that our brother Christian Atsu would be found alive.

The earthquakes and subsequent aftershocks have killed nearly 45,000 people in Turkey and Syria. Another 6.3-magnitude quake hit the region on Monday.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Ohikere in Abuja, Nigeria.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.