BRUMADINHO, Brazil — A week after the collapse of a mining dam in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, dozens paid homage Friday to the 115 people killed and 248 still missing, while newly released video footage showed the moment that a powerful wave of waste began sweeping over everything in its path.
A ceremony was held at the site of the disaster around 1 p.m. local time, the hour at which the dam breached on Jan. 25, unleashing a destructive torrent of reddish-brown mining waste.
Backhoes stopped digging in the mud, and rescuers looking for survivors in the thick mine tailings all looked to the sky, as 10 fire department and police helicopters released flower petals on the iron ore mining complex.
A priest also gave a brief Mass in front of a tall pink cross that had been planted in the mud.
“It is totally devastated; it looks like there has been a war,” said 23-year-old Edvan Cristi, who lost friends who worked at the mine.
In one video obtained by The Associated Press, cars can be seen driving around desperately trying to escape as a gush of mud approaches with dramatic strength.
A spokesman for the Minas Gerais Fire Department said after the ceremony that authorities were not calling off the search for bodies although no one had been found alive since Saturday.
On Friday, operations seemed to enter a new phase as firefighters began excavating the mud with heavy machinery. So far, efforts have been focused on finding bodies closer to the surface and did not involve backhoes.