At least five people died and 20 are missing when a huge rocky wall of a canyon fell on Saturday on some tourist boats in a lake in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, which has suffered a heavy rainstorm in recent days.
The commander of the Minas Gerais Fire Department, Edgard Estevo, reported at a press conference that 32 other people were injured, although 23 of them suffered only minor injuries and have already received medical discharge.
The accident occurred around 11.00 local time (14.00 GMT) in Furnas Lake, a tourist spot in the municipality of Capitólio (southeast), when a large block of stone fell from a height of five meters on three boats, two of them which were completely buried.
A video that circulates on social networks and whose authenticity was confirmed to Efe by firefighters shows the moment when the huge rock detaches itself from the canyon wall and falls on the group of boats that were in the lake.
In another video moments before the accident, the affected boats are observed trying to get away from the canyon wall, amid the warnings and shouts of the people who were in the surrounding boats.
“Up to now, five deaths have been confirmed and we are working with the possibility of 20 missing persons at this time. We are collecting information to certify that these people were on the premises” of the accident, Estevo told reporters.
Firefighters, who will continue their searches into the night for safety reasons, suspect that heavy rainfall in recent days put pressure on the canyon walls, which may have caused the landslide.
The spokesperson for the Minas Gerais Fire Department, Pedro Aihara, explained in statements to the ‘GloboNews’ channel that this region of canyons is made up of sedimentary rocks “more susceptible to the actions of wind and rain” and, therefore, “presents less resistance “.
“We are in a fairly rainy period, which has been able to accelerate the penetration of water into the rocky structure,” he said.
For its part, the Brazilian Navy reported in a note that it opened an investigation to clarify the causes and circumstances of the accident.
The governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, regretted what happened on his social networks and affirmed that the rescue work continues.
“I sympathize with the families at this difficult time. We will continue to act to provide the necessary support and protection,” he said.
The town of Capitólio, located regarding 280 kilometers from Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais (southeast), is a tourist destination throughout the year due to its impressive gorges that can be visited by boat rides.
At another point in Minas Gerais, heavy rains also caused the overflow of a dam at the French steelmaker Vallourec on Saturday, which forced the highway that connects Belo Horizonte with Rio de Janeiro to be cut, without any fatalities.
EFE
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