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According to the authorities, 427 people were in the Córrego do Feijão mine, in the southeast of the state of Minas Gerais, when the dam broke out Friday, releasing a muddy sea of mine debris in the area.
Hundreds of people are still missing and the scale of the damage is still being calculated, especially in the mining town of Brumadinho, almost buried under the deluge.
Greenpeace Brazil has stated that Vale's "corporate greed" and "omission and inefficiency" of the Brazilian government were to blame for the 2015 Mariana incident and the latest in date in Brumadinho.
"We are not facing an accident, but a crime against man and nature.How many lives do we still have to lose (until that) the Brazilian state and the societies Ministries learn from their mistakes? " The director of Greenpeace Brazil campaigns, Nilo D'Ávila, said in a statement.
"They could only run for their lives"
The breach flooded parts of Minas Gerais and buried most of Brumadinho, according to footage from Record TV, a subsidiary of CNN. Debris spread through the mine's administrative area, where employees were working, Vale said.
Heavy rains hampered search and rescue. The video showed helicopters hovering over the ground as firefighters pulled people out of the mud.
Authorities temporarily halted search and rescue operations on Sunday and placed 3,000 people under evacuation, fearing that another nearby dam would be about to break. The orders were lifted after the authorities determined that Dam VI was no longer in danger of exploding.
Monday afternoon, 291 people were still missing and 192 people were saved, said the Civil Defense of Minas Gerais. In addition, 23 people are hospitalized, said the fire department.
Karolainy Stefany de Jesus, 21, lives near the affected area. She received a call from her uncle, who works in Vale, and went to the area to see if she could find relatives.
She found a scene of desperation, she said.
"I could only see people screaming and screaming," she said. "The sirens did not work, only people shouting to advise others, everyone was desperate."
The niece of De Jesus, Cristina Paula, is absent and does not appear on any list. Paula was working at the Nova Instancia Hotel, which was engulfed by mud and water during the dam breakup. De Jesus says that two survivors at the hotel told him that the employees did not have time to advise anyone because "they could only run for life".
"It's devastating, everyone here is in shock, no one expects it to happen," de Jesus said.
The accusations of wrongdoing rise against Vale and the Brazilian government
Officials say they expect to contain muddy tailings called tailings within two days. The Brazilian National Water Agency announced that it was monitoring the residues and coordinating the water supply plans of the affected area.
Attorney General Andre Mendonca said Vale was responsible for the disaster, the second of its kind in three years, involving the mining company.
In a video of the weekend, Vale chief Fabio Schvartsman called the Brumadinho dam "inexcusable" and asked the Brazilian public to apologize. He added that the company would help the victims and said that Vale was "making considerable efforts" to improve its dams after the Mariana disaster.
Greenpeace and others, however, have accused Vale and the Brazilian government of not acting after Mariana.
At a press conference Sunday, Regional Development Minister Gustavo Canuto said the government had not enacted legislation after the Mariana disaster to improve dam securement policies.
"The national security dams policy was revised in 2010. It is a law that needs to be reviewed.After the Mariana accident, various projects were presented, but we did not not able to finalize this change of law, but it is essential, "said Canuto. I said.
"The responsibility to monitor and prevent future disasters rests with us all: at the private, national and federal levels." The idea is that we all sit at the table, listen to specialists, examine the regulatory framework. and improve this situation in order to avoid other catastrophes occurring in the world ". future."
Local environmental activist Carolina de Moura echoed Canuto's comments about the lack of policy reform after Mariana. She said she attended public hearings and meetings with civil society to renew Vale's license and was disappointed by the lack of transparency in the company.
"We attended regular meetings in their offices, no one had any problems with the roadblock, but they were not very transparent, they would not even share with us the presentations they made, for example "she said.
She says she hopes Vale will face legal consequences this time around, but she is not optimistic.
"The only answer is the complete restoration of the Rio Doce Basin, but considering what happened in Mariana, I think we will suffer for a very long time."
Marcia Reverdosa reported from Sao Paulo and Emanuella Grinberg wrote from Atlanta. Lara Stahlberg, Mitchell McCluskey, Amir Vera, CNN's Flora Charner and Hira Humayun contributed to this story.
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