The wall of mud hit Bento Rodrigues, a village with about 600 inhabitants, and the number of people affected in the area could rise to 2,000, the Globo news website reported, citing estimates from the prefecture where the mine is located.
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The head of emergency planning at Samarco, the joint venture company that runs the mine, linked the incident to seismic activity in the area, but the company’s press representatives could not confirm the cause of the incident.
The accident sent a few 62 million cubic meters of water and iron ore leftovers flooding into the village, which is a few 4 miles (7 kilometers) downhill from the mine, officials said Friday.
“There is no way to survive under that material”, he said of the mudslide.
At least two dams ruptured at a Brazilian open-pit mine on Thursday, sending a torrent of toxic sludge and wastewater pouring into a nearby village-submerging vehicles, sweeping away homes, and leaving over a dozen people feared dead. A local hospital confirmed one death, while a union reported 15 to 16 fatalities and 45 missing.
Dirce da Silva Mendes, a mother of two, said: “The mud has taken over the whole house”.
People stand in their damaged home in Barra Longa after a dam burst on Thursday in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, Saturday, November 7, 2015.
For its part, Samarco Mineração said it presently has no idea why the dam broke.
Iron ore is transported down a slurry pipe to Espirito Santo in south-eastern Brazil, where it is turned into pellets.
“We lost everything. It moved so fast”, she said.
Analysts at Clarksons Platou Securities said on Friday that the likelihood of a lengthy stoppage at the Germano mine, which accounts for about one-fifth of seaborne pellet market, could lift iron ore prices.
BHP chairman Jac Nasser said in a statement on Sunday that “words can not describe the impact of this tragedy on the employees and contractors of Samarco, their families and the community”.
Rescue teams have struggled to reach villages devastated by a massive mudflow after two dams burst at a major Brazilian mine that is co-owned by BHP Billiton, wreaking havoc more than 80 kilometres downstream and prompting officials to warn of a higher death toll.
Samarco produces about 29 million metric tons of iron ore, and is one of Brazil’s biggest deposits of the steelmaking commodity.
“When I went outside there were already people running uphill saying the dam burst”, Joaquim Dutra said.
The dam contained tailings, a mining waste product of metal filings, water and occasionally chemicals.
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According to Samarco officials, all dams have operation licenses issued by the regional environmental office and the last inspection in July indicated that they were in safe conditions.
