Brazil mudslide likely killed 13, ‘hope fading’ for missing

The public prosecutor’s office has said it may file criminal charges against Samarco, which is jointly owned by the Brazilian mining company Vale and Australia’s BHP Billiton, over the facility’s lack of an emergency siren. “Obviously, this wasn’t enough”, he added, referring to the existing regulatory framework.

A 2013 study warned that such an incident could happen with the bigger of the two dams in questions – which the company now says was undergoing routine expansion work when it burst – and recommended an action plan to avoid the scenario, including evacuation plans.

“Our thoughts are with the people of Samarco, the affected community and with the people of Brazil”.

BHP Billiton said it was working with Samarco, Vale, local communities and the authorities to assess the full impact of the incident.

Since Friday, hundreds of people have taken shelter in a gym in the nearby city of Mariana as donations of food, clothing and mattresses pour in.

Residents were warned of the breach by phone, but no siren system was in place.

Samarco said 588 people were placed in hotels as the army, police and firefighters helped the injured and homeless. “Just memories”, Soraia Souza, 24, from another village – Paracatu de Baixo – destroyed in the floods, said as she held an 18-month-old baby. A further 15 local inhabitants are also missing.

Mariana Mayor Duarte Junior had to be hospitalized on Sunday due to stress and exhaustion, but doctors ruled out that he had suffered a heart attack. Doctors said he would remain under observation, but attributed the scare to stress and fatigue.

While the surge itself has receded, authorities are expecting the residue in the mainstream of the Rio Doce to reach the neighbouring state of Espirito Santo by Tuesday.

Until they have a better sense of what might have caused the rupture, authorities are also probing whether indications of possible trouble at the mine might have been ignored. In the 2015 financial year, BHP Billiton’s share of production was 14.5 Mt and the contribution from Samarco was about 3 per cent of the BHP Billiton Group’s Underlying EBIT.

The sound of the two dams bursting at the Samarco iron ore mine in Brazil’s central Minas Gerais state sent the approximately 600 residents running for higher ground.

The Samarco mine is located in the so-called iron quadrangle, one of the most heavily mined regions in the world.