Mudslide Kills 10, Injures 11 Near Rio de Janeiro

At a Glance

• Heavy downpours cause the mudslide in the Boa Esperanca neighborhood in Niteroi.
• A boulder crushed six houses, killing 10 people and injuring 11 others.

A boulder in a mudslide caused by heavy downpours crushed six houses Saturday near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, leaving 10 people dead and 11 injured, local authorities said.

Roberto Robadey, Rio's civil defense department head, told the Globo TV network that the six houses were in the Boa Esperanca neighborhood in the city of Niteroi.

"It rained a lot over the past two days and a state of alert was declared for Niteroi," he said. "People were advised of the situation and were recommended to move to safer locations."

Residents, volunteers and firefighters search the debris after a mudslide in the Boa Esperanca or "Good Hope," neighborhood in Niteroi, Brazil, on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018.

(AP Photo/Leo Correa)

But Claudio dos Santos, president of the Boa Esperanca Residents' Association, told Globo TV that several families "refused to leave."

Rescue workers were searching for victims and survivors trapped under the debris and mud.

The Rio fire department said the dead included a 3-year-old boy, two elderly women, and a middle-aged man. It did not give any more information about the victims.

Rosemary Caetano da Silva, a resident of Boa Esperanca, told Globo TV that her 8-year-old granddaughter was buried underneath the rubble.

She also said she managed to rescue her grandson who was taken to a hospital.

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