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10 killed in Brazilian mudslide

November 11, 2018

Eleven people have been rescued from the rubble of a mudslide near Rio de Janeiro, while four are still missing. The mudslide follows days of heavy rain in the area.

https://p.dw.com/p/382he
Mudslide near Rio, Brazil
Image: imago/Agencia EFE/J. Lucena

At least 10 people were killed on Saturday when a hillside collapsed in a poor neighborhood near Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

The mudslide buried six homes in the municipality of Niteroi following days of heavy rains in the area. Among those killed were a 3-year-old child and a 10-month-old baby.

Rescue teams managed to rescue 11 people from the rubble, including a baby and two children. Four people are believed to be missing.

Mudslide near Rio, Brazil
Families in the area had been warned about potential mudslides following days of rainImage: imago/Agencia EFE/J. Lucena

"We are being very careful in carrying out the rescue work, which is practically done almost manually, in order to possibly find people still alive," Roberto Robadey, Rio's civil defense department head, told the Globo TV network.

Some local residents were seriously injured and received medical care at the site before they were released.

Heavy storms are common during the Brazilian spring and summer. Landslides can often be fatal due to terrain and irregular construction on hillsides.

In 2010, around 300 landslides in the hills of Rio killed more than 250 people.

cw/amp (AP, dpa, EFE)

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