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Brazil: 5 Arrested in Dam Collapse That Killed 65, Devastating Environment

HeadlineJan 30, 2019

In Brazil, police arrested five people over the devastating dam collapse in Minas Gerais last week that killed at least 65 people, with nearly 300 still missing. Three of those arrested work for Vale, the mining company that owned and operated the dam. The other two worked for a German company that carried out inspections on the dam last year. The news comes as families of the victims have started holding funerals for the deceased. Residents and workers are demanding justice for what they say was a preventable disaster. Meanwhile, local indigenous communities are decrying the environmental effects of the dam breach, which dumped millions of tons of iron ore waste onto the land and into waterways.

Hayo Pataxo Ha-ha-hae: “We lost the equilibrium of our reserve, because the river was everything. We bathed in it. We washed our clothes, our dishes. So we get really sad with this situation from this tragedy that the white man caused with our nature.”

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