A journalist walks in front of a screen with olympics logos during the medal launching ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 14, 2016. REUTERS/Sergio Moraes 
 
 RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Rio de Janeiro's governor declared a state of financial emergency Friday and requested federal funds to help fulfill obligations for public services during the Olympics that start Aug. 5. 
 
 Emergency measures are needed to avoid "a total collapse in public security, health, education, transport and environmental management," a decree in the state's Official Gazette said. 
 
 The state's revenue, largely tied to the petroleum industry, slumped in the last two years as global oil prices collapsed. 
 
 The announcement followed this week's visit to Rio by Brazil's Interim President Michel Temer, who said the federal government would ensure all obligations are met for a successful Games. 
 
 Rio is expecting about 500,000 foreign visitors during the Olympics, which has coincided with Brazil's worst recession since the 1930s and a political crisis that last month led to the suspension of President Dilma Rousseff. 
 
 "The state's financial emergency in no way delays the delivery of Olympic projects and the promises assumed by the city of Rio," Mayor Eduardo Paes said on Twitter. 
 
 He also underscored that legacy construction projects, with the exception of an 8.79 billion-real expansion of Rio's metro that is expected to be finished just days before the Games open, are the responsibility of the city and that most have been completed. 
 
 The local organizing committee for the Games said the state's fiscal situation did not impact its actual running of the Olympics, which relies entirely on private funds. 
 
 While the majority of Olympic infrastructure costs have been spread across city, state and federal budgets, with some financing from private companies, the state is responsible for most day-to-day security and health services in Rio. 
 
 The financial pinch resulted in a 30-percent cut in the state's security budget - just as Rio has seen a jump in homicides and assaults in recent months, raising concerns about safety ahead of the Olympics. 
 
 The state of Rio expects a budget deficit of over 19 billion reais ($5.56 billion) this year as spending planned before oil prices fell outstrips revenue that is tumbling during Brazil's recession. 
 
 Rio state's debt has been downgraded several times. 
 
 On Wednesday, Fitch Ratings downgraded Rio's debt rating to 'B-' from 'B+', saying the state was suffering "a fast-deteriorating liquidity position." 
 
 Since late last year, the state has been forced to delay pension and salary payments and shutter some schools and hospitals, where crucial supplies, including medicines and syringes, are lacking. 
 
 Brazil is also facing an outbreak of the Zika virus, which has been linked to the birth defect microcephaly in which babies are born with abnormally small heads frequently associated with developmental issues. 
 
 (Reporting by Paulo Prada, Stephen Eisenhammer and Brad Brooks; editing by Richard Chang and Andrew Hay) ||||| Mario Tama/Getty Images 
 
 The Rio Olympics are starting to look like a picnic scheduled too far in advance. The picnic basket—in this case, the actual facilities of the games—looks like it might turn out OK, even if organizers are cutting costs left and right. (No TVs in the Olympic Village apartments, for instance. Boo-hoo. That's like leaving out the capers.) 
 
 Henry Grabar Henry Grabar is a staff writer for Slate’s Moneybox. 
 
 But as the media hypes the minor faults of the games (fewer seats at some venues!), the broader context is that the picnic is happening in a thunderstorm. The state of Rio de Janeiro, which includes the city of Rio de Janeiro, is “nearing a social collapse,” state chief of staff Leonardo Espindola warned the country’s Supreme Court in April. 
 
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 Public workers have been working with delayed salaries since the start of the year; teachers and other workers have been striking for months. The Rio state security budget has been cut by 30 percent this year. Hospitals are in crisis and have been running out of essential supplies like syringes. Welfare programs like the Bolsa Familia, a Lula-era project that gives cash transfers to low-income families that send their kids to school, are being suspended. 
 
 On Wednesday, the credit rating agency Fitch dropped the state’s rating by two notches. Standard & Poor’s did the same in May. Both agencies say the downgrade reflects concern about underfunded pensions. 
 
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 The contrast between shoddy public services and frenzied World Cup and Olympics construction has rankled Cariocas for years. But the Olympics aren’t really to blame for Rio’s problems: The state has borne relatively little of the cost, according to the Brazil 2016 “Responsibility Matrix.” Brazil is experiencing a recession and a political crisis driven by a gargantuan corruption scandal involving the state oil company, Petrobras, and seemingly the entire federal legislature. The oil crash has hit Rio particularly hard. In 2012, more than half of the state’s investments were related to Petrobras. Today, oil royalties are half of what they were three years ago. 
 
 Obviously, the Olympic preparations have been impacted. The project to plant 500,000 mangrove trees in Barra de Tijuca, where a number of Olympic activities will occur, has been stalled due to the state's financial problems, Bloomberg reports. The half-dozen major construction firms building most of the Olympic infrastructure are all involved in the Petrobras corruption investigation, and several Olympic projects, including the port renovation and the metro expansion, are being investigated by federal prosecutors. 
 
 But as far as all things Olympics, Brasilia mostly has the Rio region’s back. The country’s government is responsible for any debts the local organizing committee incurs. Brasilia, frightened by the prospect of a failed state under the Olympic spotlight, is considering giving the state of Rio an emergency loan. The Brazilian justice and defense ministries will pay for most of the security preparations for the games. ||||| Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The Olympics in Rio are due to start on 5 August 
 
 The Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro has declared a financial emergency less than 50 days before the Olympics. 
 
 Interim Governor Francisco Dornelles says the "serious economic crisis" threatens to stop the state from honouring commitments for the Games. 
 
 Most public funding for the Olympics has come from Rio's city government, but the state is responsible for areas such as transport and policing. 
 
 Interim President Michel Temer has promised significant financial help. 
 
 The governor has blamed the crisis on a tax shortfall, especially from the oil industry, while Brazil overall has faced a deep recession. 
 
 The measure could accelerate the release of federal emergency funds. 
 
 Rio state employees and pensioners are owed wages in arrears. Hospitals and police stations have been severely affected. 
 
 What has gone wrong in Brazil? 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption Rio state is responsible for the expansion of the metro for the Olympics 
 
 In a decree, Mr Dornelles said the state faced "public calamity" that could lead to a "total collapse" in public services, such as security, health and education. 
 
 He authorised "exceptional measures" to be taken ahead of the Games that could impact "all essential public services", but no details were given. 
 
 The state has projected a budget deficit of $5.5bn (£3.9bn) for this year. 
 
 Rio's mayor Eduardo Paes said on Twitter the state's decision "in no way delays the delivery of Olympic projects and the promises assumed by the city of Rio". 
 
 There are also concerns over an outbreak of the Zika virus, which has been linked to birth defects, and the impact it could have on the city's tourism. 
 
 Rio expects about 500,000 foreign visitors during the Olympics.
– With less than 50 days before the Olympics, the state of Rio de Janeiro officially declared financial emergency while warning of a "serious economic crisis" and looming "public calamity," the BBC reports. According to Reuters, Gov. Francisco Dornelles declared the state of financial emergency Friday, requesting federal funds to keep public services going during the Olympics and to avoid a “total collapse in public security, health, education, transport, and environmental management." Rio is expecting half-a-million visitors when the Olympics start Aug. 5. During the games, the state, which is facing a $5.6 billion budget deficit this year, will be in charge of transportation, policing, and health. And things don't look good on that front. Homicides and assaults are increasing in Rio at the same time the state's security budget was cut by 30%. Rio is already delaying pension and salary payments while closing schools and hospitals. Slate reports teachers have been striking for months, and hospitals are running out of syringes. Plus there's the whole Zika thing. Brazil, as a whole, is in its worst recession in 80 years thanks to low oil prices. And the state chief of staff says Rio is "nearing a social collapse." But despite all that, the Olympics will likely go off without too many hitches. Much of the funding for the games is coming from the Rio de Janeiro city government. “Once the games are over? That’s when the real crisis will set in," according to Slate.