Posted by Main entrance of the Brazilian mining company Vale SA, in Nova Lima, Brazil January 29, 2019. REUTERS/Washington Alves
BRUMADINHO, Brazil (Reuters) – The union representing mining workers in the Brazilian town devastated by a burst tailings dam said on Tuesday it had been asking Vale SA for “at least two years” to move its cafeteria and offices out of the path of a dam break.
In a statement, the union said Vale had responded to the request saying it had a plan to move the installations. The dam’s collapse on Friday sent a wave of mining waste through those buildings at lunchtime, leaving scores of workers missing and presumed dead. Vale did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reporting by Gram Slattery; Writing and additional reporting by Marcelo Teixeira; Editing by Dan Grebler