142 killed by the rupture of the dam that caused a tragedy in Brazil

The death toll of the rupture of an iron mine dam in the city of Brumadinho, in southeastern Brazil, increased this Tuesday to 142, while that of disappeared was reduced until in 194according to the latest report reported by the Civil Defense.

Research began in the early hours of Tuesday with the participation of about 400 menamong firefighters, soldiers and volunteers.

According to the report, during the day explorations were carried out in 22 different places in the region affected by the tragedy of January 25, with the help of 10 helicopters and supported by boats and bulldozers.

The tragedy occurred on January 25 when one of the dams where mineral waste was stored in a complex of the Brazilian mining giant Vale in Brumadinho, in the municipality of Minas Gerais (southeast), he broke out and generated an avalanche who buried the company's own facilities and hundreds of rural properties.

Advanced rescue work is complex and slow to develop due to the complexity of the terrain, as the wave of waste following the breakage of the dam has caused mud to reach 20 meters in some areas. height

In the judicial field, The Brazilian justice ordered Tuesday to release, as a precaution, the five people who had been arrested on the last day 29 accused of falsifying documents about the safety of the dam that broke out.

In the decision, the case manager, the magistrate Nefi Cordeiro, considered that the two engineers of the German company Tüv Süd and the three employees of Vale Mining Company, owner of the collapsed dam, "have already testified in court", it was not verified that they could offer "no". any risk "to society, also" there is no adequate basis for prisons "

As a result of various actions brought by the regional government and the prosecutor's office, the court seized at least R $ 12,000 million (today $ 3,260 million) Vale's accounts to ensure the payment of compensation to the victims and the damages caused.

Vale announced last week its intention to close all dams built in the same way as Brumadinho, ie the waste itself and the land in the area.

However, the company announced on Monday that it would appeal the justice of the peace's decision to cease operations in at least 8 of the company's dams, including Laranjeiras, in the Brucutu mine, the largest in the country. the valley of Minas. Gerais.

According to giant Vale, the impact of this dam would be about 30 million tons of iron ore per year.

The Brumadinho disaster occurred only three years after another similar incident occurred in Mariana, a municipality also located in the state of Minas Gerais, where the breakdown of several of the company's dams Mining Samarco, controlled by Vale and BHP Billiton, caused 19 deaths and an unprecedented environmental tragedy.