[Drought continues in the Brazilian Amazon and 41 cities enter a state of emergency] On October 21, the civil defense department of the Amazon State in northwest Brazil reported on the 20th that 41 cities in the state have declared a state of emergency due to severe drought, and another 16 cities are in a state of early warning. The lives of more than 102,000 families have been directly affected. The regional director of the Brazilian Geological Survey said that due to the influence of the El Niño phenomenon, water levels in some rivers continued to drop. In Manaus, the capital of Amazonas state, the water level of the Negro River has dropped to 17.12 meters, 2.79 meters lower than the same period in 2025. The drop in water levels has resulted in some waterways only being able to accommodate small boats, and a large number of passenger and cargo ships are unable to dock. Many coastal communities are faced with a shortage of supplies and inconvenient access for people. The Amazon State Civil Defense Department stated that it is continuing to distribute food, drinking water and other supplies to the affected communities to alleviate the shortage of supplies caused by the interruption of waterways. (Xinhua News Agency)