"I saw a cloud of dust and a wave of mud on the other"

The inhabitants of Brumadinho recounted how the avalanche that covered the city was

BRUMADINHO, Brazil.- "I was awakened by a loud noise, followed by another growing roar, and when I went out, I saw a huge cloud of dust and a wave of mud , a wave that spread on the other with the deafening noise of the things I was hanging out, "says one of the survivors of

mud flow in Brumadinho

after the break-up of the day before yesterday of a containment dam.

Mayke Ferreira, an employee of a truck wash company owned by Vale, owner of the mine, sat in his bedroom when the mud wave pbaded near the site. A few hours after the disaster, you could see a torrent of black mud over 150 meters wide covering the entire region.

The firefighters' helicopters, which did not stop their work during the night, tirelessly flew over the dark land, with remains of buildings and abundant vegetation, in search of the survivors of the disaster.
tragedy that left at least 34 dead and 265 missing. Yesterday, the day was sunny in Brumadinho, a city of 39 000 inhabitants, but in the afternoon, torrential rains fell.

"Adelia's house was there and Nilza's, who was selling sugar cane, was also swallowed up by the mud," Rosilene Aganetti said, pointing to a huge muddy area covering the path and the surrounding area.

"There were people and houses here, I'm devastated," says the 57-year-old woman, residing in the city of Alberto Flores. "I have several missing friends who were at Vale's restaurant," he adds, while suppressing sobs.

Many employees of the company were present at lunch time, when the place was swept by the quagmire.

Minas Gerais "I lived at the foot of the dam, I raised my daughters," says Aganetti, whose husband worked for years for the group involved for the second time in a tragedy in the state of

Minas Gerais

. The rupture of a dam co-administered by the mining group of Mariana, about 120 kilometers from Brumadinho, made 19 deaths in 2015 and caused the worst ecological disaster in Brazil.

Suely de Olivera Costa is looking for her husband. "I'm desperate!" He shouts, as Vale's security agents stop him.

"How do you want me to be calm when he's dead?" He cries to a man, between two requests for calm. "Vale destroyed Mariana and now they have destroyed Brumadinho, and no one is doing anything, which one will be next?" Asks the woman.

The human cost of the Brumadinho tragedy may be much higher than Mariana's.

Maintenance

William Silva, a 21-year-old railroad worker, did not hear about "six or seven acquaintances, including very close people," that he had known "since his childhood" the day before yesterday. He also accuses Vale. "The dam stopped working in 2015 and it has not been serviced," he says. "They did not do anything and it broke."

In the town of Alberto Flores, the force of the torrent of earth and debris has unearthed an electric pylon and buried a car in a deep ditch in the center.

About 200 people are present when the tow truck arrives and silently contemplates the anguished spectacle of this city, now cut by an immense scar of black earth.

"Our city depended on the mining industry and was destroyed.For us, it is a total loss, we do not know what will be our future," said Sandra Gonçaves, 43, who works in a mining company tragedy

Agencia Ansa and AFP