A powerful extra tropical storm - one originating outside the tropics - hit southern Brazil over the weekend, killing at least one person.

Flooding caused by the storm forced more than 50,000 people from their homes, and thousands of people sought refuge in churches and gymnasiums.

Local residents say they barely escaped with their lives.

''There was so much water, and suddenly the water just took everything."

"The rain ruined everything. We barely had time to get out,"

Civil defense official Luis Fernando Santos said the number of people affected could increase.

The state of Santa Catarina, where people's homes were heavily damaged, has declared a state of emergency in four cities.

Meteorologists said the mix of wind and rain created waves up to five meters high. The entire weekend was consumed by extra tropical storms, a common occurrence during the country's winter season.

Separately in the northern part of the country,

A boat ferrying more than one-hundred people home from a party sank in the Amazon region on Sunday, killing at least 15 and leaving dozens missing.

The ferryboat was capsized in a pre-dawn rainstorm.

Investigators were expected to consider the torrential rain and possible over-loading as contributing causes for the mishap but their report is not expected for at least three months.