Girl rescued after 16 hours under mud as heavy rain leaves seven dead in Brazil

Girl (4) was pulled out alive in the city of Petropolis, 69km north of Rio de Janeiro

Rescue teams in Brazil had to stop work on Friday because of the risks of new landslides. Photograph: Bruna Prado/AP
Rescue teams in Brazil had to stop work on Friday because of the risks of new landslides. Photograph: Bruna Prado/AP

Heavy rains in Brazil have killed at least seven people, authorities said on Saturday, while a four-year-old girl was rescued after more than 16 hours under mud.

The girl was pulled out alive in the city of Petropolis, 69km north of Rio de Janeiro.

Rescue teams had to stop work on Friday because of the risks of new landslides.

The girl’s father died as a house was knocked to the ground. She survived because he protected her with his body, members of rescue teams said.

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Three more people died in the same place.

Residents had been warned of potential problems for the weekend since Thursday.

Firefighters have struggled to reach those hit by heavy rains, many of them residents of long-endangered areas.

Sniffer dogs were also part of the rescue efforts. Almost 100 people had been saved, authorities said. – AP