A Billion Dead Chickens Show Toll of Strike Crippling Brazil
- Truckers increase blockades, Brasilia airport runs out of fuel
- Government ministers say deal reached with protesting truckers
A paralyzing truckers’ strike in Brazil showed few signs of easing on Friday, prompting the president to deploy national security forces amid warnings of a calamity in one of the world’s largest cities and potentially devastating livestock losses.
Sao Paulo, a megacity that’s home to more than 12 million people, declared a state of emergency and warned that shortages caused by the five-day strike may cause a state of public calamity, while export group ABPA said a billion chickens and 20 million swine may die in coming days due to a lack of feed. Rio de Janeiro, meanwhile, is in a "state of attention" with shortages of fuel, food and public transport. None of the gas stations in Brasilia, the nation’s capital, had any fuel by Friday evening, according to local media reports.