After two people missing in the catastrophe were confirmed deceased, friends and family mourned the lives of ten people who died when a cliff collapsed onto tourist boats on a lake in Brazil.
On Saturday, a big rock piece broke free from a ravine and smashed into four boats in Furnas Lake in Brazil’s eastern Minas Gerais state, as terrified tourists looked on helplessly from other boats.
Rescuers discovered the bodies of the two remaining missing people on Sunday, according to civil police commissioner Marcos de Souza Pimenta.
Authorities reported that more than 30 persons were hurt, with nine of them requiring hospitalization.
According to rescuers, the ten people who died were part of a group of family and friends on the boat who were hit the hardest by the rockfall.
According to preliminary findings, the victims were all Brazilian nationals aged 14 to 68.
Tourists flock to see the cliffs, tunnels, and waterfalls that surround Lake Furnas, which is formed by the same-named hydroelectric dam.
The moment the cliff toppled was captured in dramatic videos shared on social media.
One such video shows multiple persons warning that “tons of stones are falling” and calling at the occupants of other boats to move away from the rock wall a minute before the catastrophe.
President Jair Bolsonaro shared several of the footage and termed the cliff collapse a “catastrophe” on his Twitter account.
A friend of one of those slain, Ramilton Rodrigues, was waiting with family members for the bodies to arrive at a forensic institution in Passos, about 44 kilometers from the accident site.
“My friend came to the Capitolio neighborhood to celebrate his birthday; he would have turned 25 on Sunday, but he was slain a day early,” Rodrigues told AFP as he waited in agony.
For safety considerations, a diving team had to put their search on hold overnight, while other rescuers continued to work. On Sunday, divers resumed their hunt.
According to firemen, extremely heavy rain has poured in southeastern Brazil in recent days, possibly causing the collapse.
According to AFP, rock falls in the area are more likely to occur during the rainy months of December and January, according to geographer Eduardo Bulhoes of the Fluminense Federal University.
He suggested that people be kept further away from the cliffs during the rainy season to avoid future accidents.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
