Tragedy in Rio de Janeiro: at least nine dead by landslide in a favela

RIO DE JANEIRO.- At least nine people died and several are still missing as a result of a landslide of land in a favela of Niteroi, neighboring city


Rio de Janeiro
after two days of intense rain in the region.

According to the Civil Defense, the avalanche occurred at 4 am, when a large rock fell from the top of the hill and touched six houses of the Boa Esperança community . , in the district of Piratininga. Rescue teams were able to revive eleven people, including a baby, but nine people died buried in the mud, pebbles and debris of the houses. Some 200 members of the Civil Defense and fire brigade worked against the clock to find the missing, without the exact number of people who were there at the time of the projection.

"My eight-month-old granddaughter, Nicole, brought my grandson, who is in the hospital with my children," said desperately and wounded Rosemary Caetano da Silva, who helped the rescuers on the site of his house.

The night before, the family celebrated the birthday of his brother, Arthur Caetano de Carvalho, aged 3; the child was in serious condition, accompanied by his parents. Survivors were transferred to hospitals Azevedo Lima and Mario Monteiro.

"It has been raining a lot these past two days." Niteroï was on the alert and the communities were informed of the situation and advised them to look for places. safer, "said Commander Roberto Robadey, secretary of the Civil Defense of the State of Rio de Janeiro, to Globo News.

Fortunately, in the mid-morning, the downpour was over and the Weather conditions were lenient and stable for the region in the following hours .. Traffic on Francisco da Cruz Nunes Avenue, near the scene of the tragedy, had been closed to facilitate relief operations and badistance the inhabitants of the favela, because other houses were in danger of collapsing.

The president of the Morro da Boa Esperança Residents' Association, Claudio dos Santos, had already been prevented from "The houses are isolated by the Civil Defense, but there are people who are complicated and who do not want to leave, and yesterday we were already worried about this rain, but it happened ", lamented Dos Santos.