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posted by martyb on Saturday January 26 2019, @04:03AM   Printer-friendly
from the waste dept.

Brazil Dam Collapse: Hundreds Missing after Mining Disaster:

As many as 200 people are missing after three dams operated by the mining giant Vale collapsed in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, releasing a wave of red mining waste and prompting fears of widespread contamination.

At least 50 people died in the disaster on Friday, Avimar de Melo, mayor of the nearby town of Brumadinho told the Hoje em Dia newspaper. "We don't have any more details because it's all happening very quickly," he said.

Brazilian television showed images of survivors being winched to safety by a helicopter after the disaster at the Feijão mine near Brumadinho, less than two hours from the state capital, Belo Horizonte.

Among those missing were 100 mine workers who were having lunch in an administrative area when it was hit by a torrent of sludge and water, said a fire brigade spokesman, Lieutenant Pedro Aihara.

"Our main worry now is to quickly find out where the missing people are," Aihara said on GloboNews cable television channel.

Videos shared on social media showed houses buried in the mud and local media reported that the nearby Inhotim outdoor art complex had been evacuated though not affected.

The dam collapse came less than four years after Brazil's worst environmental disaster was caused by the failure of a tailings dam at Mariana in the same state. That dam was operated by Samarco, which at the time of the disaster was half-owned by Vale.

"I don't have words to describe my suffering, my enormous sadness, my disappointment in what has just happened. It is beyond anything you can imagine," Vale's CEO, Fabio Schvartsman, said in an address on YouTube.

He said the company had made an "enormous effort" to make its tailings dams safe after the Mariana disaster. "The whole of Vale will do whatever is possible to help the people affected," he said.

Also at BBC and U.S. News & World Report.


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  • (Score: 1, Troll) by Arik on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:02AM (4 children)

    by Arik (4543) on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:02AM (#792192) Journal
    "To contend there's a balance to strike speaks volumes, revealing a great deal of sociopathy"

    Resources are finite, goods are rivalrous. Spend every penny possible on safety and you'll have none left for food, your baby will starve, and you not much later. Of course there's a balance! How privileged must one be not to know that? To imagine that your life has infinite value!?!

    I am speechless before your sheer hubris.

    --
    If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   0  
       Troll=3, Insightful=2, Underrated=1, Disagree=1, Total=7
    Extra 'Troll' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   1  
  • (Score: 3, Touché) by fustakrakich on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:05AM (2 children)

    by fustakrakich (6150) on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:05AM (#792195) Journal

    Spend every penny possible on safety and you'll have none left for food, your baby will starve, and you not much later.

    Ah yes, you mentioned something about strawmen... Mildly amusing you are...

    --
    La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
    • (Score: 1, Troll) by Arik on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:14AM (1 child)

      by Arik (4543) on Saturday January 26 2019, @05:14AM (#792201) Journal
      It's a not a strawman, it's the fundamental facts of existence.

      If you can't see that you must have someone else paying for an extravagant lifestyle.
      --
      If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
      • (Score: 0, Troll) by fustakrakich on Saturday January 26 2019, @06:53AM

        by fustakrakich (6150) on Saturday January 26 2019, @06:53AM (#792224) Journal

        It's a not a strawman

        Of course, not when you do it... S'alright, man. You go with what works. I'm hip to the routine...

        --
        La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 26 2019, @03:33PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 26 2019, @03:33PM (#792326)

    Hey, moron, you should read what the person wrote until you understand it in your thick skull.

    Spend every penny possible on safety

    That was never said. So your entire rest is just strawman argument.

    https://www.google.com/search?&q=strawman [google.com]

    an intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent's real argument

    Quoted for you, since you probably have problems understanding links too.