Brazil: rock fall accident in reservoir

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Fire-fighting boat near the site of the accident: Rock-crushed boats with high energy

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MINAS GERAIS FIREFIGHTERS HANDOUT / EPA

First a few stones fell from a cliff, then a large part of a rock loosened in the Furnas reservoir in the Rio Grande - and overturned on excursion boats cruising under it on the Lago de Furnas in Capitólio.

The rescue operation after this catastrophic accident in Brazil continues.

Divers found two people still missing, the fire department announced.

The number of dead has risen to ten.

In addition to the boat driver, the dead and missing are a married couple, their son and a grandson and other relatives and friends, said the regional police officer, Marcos Pimenta, at a press conference.

There is a possibility that after the disaster in the state of Minas Gerais, some people will still be missing.

At least 32 people were injured, but most of them were released from the hospitals on Saturday evening.

The victims came from the states of Minas Gerais and São Paulo and had been on the boat "Jesus".

The bodies were taken to the nearby town of Passos.

Five dead were identified by Sunday evening.

Because of her condition, identification was said to have been difficult for the coroners.

Video images from Saturday afternoon showed the rocks catching the boats.

According to the fire department, two boats were hit directly and two more indirectly.

It is unclear how the accident came about.

The Brazilian Navy, which participated in the rescue operation, announced an investigation.

In Minas Gerais it had recently rained heavily, as in the northeastern neighboring Bahia.

In the state, thousands recently had to leave their homes due to flooding.

Should authorities have cordoned off the rock?

The head of the applied geology department of the Brazilian Geological Service, Tiago Antonelli, said the rock face may have been exposed to centuries of erosion and has been prone to rain, heat and cold.

He said, “This is normal in many canyons, even rocks this size.

But nowadays, with the intensification of tourism, people start to approach these places and record these phenomena with their cell phones. "

Joana Sanchez, professor of geology at Goias Federal University, said authorities should have patrolled the site to avoid accidents, especially during the rainy season.

The boats should have stayed at least a kilometer from the waterfall where the accident occurred.

The bodies of the disaster have meanwhile been taken to the city of Passos, where coroners are working on their identification.

This work was difficult because the rock hit the boats with high energy, said policeman Pimenta.

The Furnas Lake, located around 400 kilometers north of the metropolis of São Paulo, with its gorges, is a popular excursion destination in the region.

It was created in 1958 for the construction of a hydropower plant.

The extensive Furnas reservoir in the Rio Grande is also known as the "Sea of ​​Minas".

The summer holidays are currently in Brazil, and the boat trip to the canyons is a classic.

Because of the heavy rains in Brazil, 138 cities were recently on alert, and the dam of the hydropower plant in Pará de Minas threatened to break on Sunday.

apr / dpa / AP