250 still missing in Brazil

Communities devastated by a dam collapse that killed at least 37 people at a Brazilian mining complex -- with hopes fading for 250 still missing -- were alarmed by an early morning alert yesterday warning of a possible second breach.

Loudspeakers rang out at 5:30am (0730 GMT) among homes surrounding the Corrego do Feijao mining complex in southeastern Brazil, warning of dangerously high water levels, the Vale mining company said.

Workers at the complex are still reeling after a barrier at the site burst on Friday, spewing millions of tons of treacherous sludge and engulfing buildings, vehicles and roads.

Firefighters halted the search for survivors and immediately began evacuating communities near the dike, which contains at least three million cubic meters (800 million gallons) of water.

"Attention, general area evacuation!" blared a warning through loudspeakers in Brumadinho, population 39,000. "Find the highest point in the city," the warning said.

Vale's CEO Fabio Schvartsman and Minas Gerais Governor Romeu Zema earlier warned that the death toll from Friday's rupture could rise.

Search and rescue operations, suspended overnight because of rain, resumed at 4:00am (0600 GMT). The military said it deployed 1,000 soldiers, including sniffer dogs, to the disaster zone.

Dozens of helicopters were set to be deployed because the thick mud was treacherous for ground rescuers to venture into.

Yesterday, firefighters raised the death toll to 37, with 192 rescued.

Meanwhile, Brazilian judicial authorities announced they had frozen $3 billion of Vale's assets, saying real estate and vehicles would be seized if the company could not come up with the full amount.

The company also has been hit with fines by the federal and state government totaling some $92.5 million.

The mining company, one of the world's biggest, was involved in a 2015 mine collapse elsewhere in Minas Gerais that claimed 19 lives in what is regarded as the country's worst-ever environmental disaster.

The Brazilian branch of environmental group Greenpeace said the dam break was "a sad consequence of the lessons not learned by the Brazilian government and the mining companies." Such incidents "are not accidents but environmental crimes that must be investigated, punished and repaired," it added.