On January 25, 2019 a dam owned by mining-company Vale burst in Brumadinho, Brazil resulting in 110 confirmed deaths and another 300 missing.

Vale is and has been a mining company since 1942, however the project in Brumadinho, Brazil required a dam to hold back wastes from the mine. According to TÜV SÜD, the German company overseeing the integrity of the mines, there was nothing out of the ordinary, though the report was made in September 2018.  The reason behind the dam’s burst is still unknown. The tide enveloped surrounding buildings, the town of Brumadnho and continued to the Parque Cachoeira neighborhood five miles away.

Brazilian Vice-President Hamilton M0urao stated “If there was malpractice, recklessness or negligence on the part of someone inside the company, that person has to answer criminally.” He is backed by the state capital’s mayor Belo Horizonte who commented “Vale’s board of directors should be in jail.”

The incident has not only left dozens dead, but contaminated and polluted the region’s ecosystem. In some parts, the sludge reaches 46 feet in-depth in certain areas and it’s contents are killing both local wildlife and degrading soil quality.

The incident at Brumadinho was not the first tragedy under Vale’s jurisdiction. In 2015, the Bento Rodriguez village faced a similar fate, leaving 19 dead and the village in ruin. The two incidents have left Brazilian citizens questioning the reliability of Vale and disheartened by the effects of the company’s failures.