More than a dozen dead after Brazil dam burst

MARIANA, Brazil (AP) — Rescuers on Friday spirited survivors out of a mountainous area of southeastern Brazil that was flooded with a sea of viscous, clay-red mud after two dams burst at an iron ore mine.

The dam was holding so-called tailings, a mining waste product of metal filings, water and occasionally chemicals.

A torrent of muck several hundred metres long swamped homes and ripped off their roofs when the dam retaining the mineral waste broke.

“It could be a significant amount of time before it [Samarco] gets back to production, so I am only surprised we haven’t seen a bigger selloff”, said Mr. Nicholson. Bento Rodrigues is about 93 miles (150 km) southeast of Belo Horizonte, Brazil’s third-largest city and the capital of the mining state of Minas Gerais.

Those who have lost their homes or evacuated the areas are being housed in a gymnasium in Mariana. More than 50 people were injured, local fire chief AdaoSeverino Junior said, adding that “the number of missing is going to surpass 40 but that is not official”.

As of Friday, the exact number of confirmed dead was unknown.

Samarco said in a Facebook post Friday that it has placed 70 families – a total of 253 people – in hotels, provided 3,800 meals and snacks, handed out 10,000 bottles of water and delivered 600 emergency kits containing sheets, towels, blankets and personal hygiene materials.

However, the Minas Gerais state fire and rescue service told Mashable that one person had died and four others had been injured; a further 13 people are missing.

BHP Billiton said it had yet to fully assess the extent of damage and casualties from a massive mudslide at Brazil’s Samarco iron ore mine on Thursday night.

Samarco said the causes of the rupture were not known.

Shares of Vale closed down 5.7 percent in Sao Paulo trading and BHP Billiton also dropped 5.7 percent in New York.

A spokesman for Vale declined to comment, pointing to a statement by Samarco that said the venture was prioritising helping people and mitigating damage to the environment and that it wasn’t yet possible to confirm the cause of the incident.

Minas Gerais has been the main mining hub of Brazil since the 16th century.

Mariana and the nearby village of Ouro Preto (“Black Gold”) sent firefighters and ambulances. Mariana residents donated mattresses, clothes, food and water for the stricken villagers.

George Sandi of the Brazilian seismological observatory told CBN radio that two small earthquakes had been registered in the region on Thursday afternoon. A few people fled to their rooftops and waited to be rescued.