Mudslides triggered by torrential rains have swept through a southeastern Brazilian city, burying houses and killing at least 39 people.
Some 1,500 people were driven from their homes by the torrent of water and mud in Angra dos Reis, a city of about 60,000 tucked between mountains and the Atlantic Ocean 100 miles west of Rio de Janeiro.
"The numbers could rise a little but we don't expect it to grow much more than this," said spokesman for the local fire department, which led the search for survivors and victims.
In 24 hours, the city got more than five inches of rain - nearly as much as the average rainfall for two weeks, the National Weather Institute in Rio said.
Hardest hit was the poor district of Areal near the Japuida River, which breached its banks and provoked a mudslide that covered at least 10 houses. Most of the houses were little more than shacks built on hillsides.
AP