Numbers: 395 located; 179 dead; 131 missing
Humanitarian actions
Vale has been undertaking all efforts to support the people affected in Brumadinho (Minas Gerais), since the early hours of the breach of Dam 1 at the Córrego do Feijão mine, on January 25. The humanitarian assistance includes psychological and social support and emergency medical care; accommodation in hotels, hostels and provisional housing; and supply of food, personal hygiene items and essentials, medicines, clothing and transportation. Check out the latest data about the measures taken by Vale in the region:
- R$2.6 million allocated to the city of Brumadinho for purchase of emergency equipment and hiring of healthcare professionals and psychological and social assistants, with the aim of improving the humanitarian aid in the affected municipalities;
- Vale invested R$6.5 million in leading-edge equipment for the Forensic Medical Institute (IML) of Belo Horizonte;
- R$100,000.00 donation to the families of each victim of the dam breach; 264 payments made;
- R$50,000.00 donation, by residence, to those who resided in the Self-Rescue Zone: 57 payments made;
- R$15,000.00 donation to those who had their business activities affected (early registration);
- R$118 million allocated for acquisition of medicines, water, equipment and other logistics costs;
- 1,400 professionals working in 11 help centers set up to assist the affected people, in Brumadinho, Belo Horizonte, Nova Lima e Itabiritos;
- 5,000 medical and psychological consultations;
- 35,000 pharmacy items purchased;
- More than 12 million liters of water for human and animal consumption and agricultural irrigation distributed to 15 cities;
- 10 hospitals and health units mobilized to assist the affected people;
- 322 accommodations arranged;
Emergency payments
- Preliminary Adjustment Agreement (TAP) that will anticipate the emergency payments to all residents of Brumadinho and those who resided within a 1km radius of the Paraopeba riverbed, between Brumadinho and the city of Pompéu, at the Retiro de Baixo dam;
- Indemnity amounts: monthly payment of one minimum wage per adult, 50% of the minimum wage per adolescent, and 25% of the minimum wage per child, for a period of 12 months, starting on January 25;
- Vale will keep paying 2/3 of the salaries of all employees and third-party employees who died in the breach until the company signs the final indemnity agreement;
- The missing people will continue to receive their salaries;
- Guarantee of employment or salary for employees of Brumadinho, including third-party employees, until December 31, 2019;
- Health insurance for the family members of Vale employees and third-party employees, subject to a registration scheme, with coverage throughout the state of Minas Gerais. Widows or partners will receive whole-of-life insurance while dependents will be covered for up to 22 years;
- Psychological assistance to workers until discharge;
- R$920 in daycare assistance for employees with children up to the age of three;
- R$998 in educational assistance for children of employees until they turn 18.
Environment
- Daily collection of water and sediments in 48 different points between the Paraopeba river, the Três Marias reservoir and the São Francisco river;
- One hospital and one shelter to assist and accommodate the animals;
- 348 animals rescued;
- 73 fish rescued;
- 184 professionals (among veterinarians, biologists and technicians) dedicated to rescuing the local fauna.
Tailings retention works
- Section 1 (up to 10 Km from the Dam I breach site):
- Vale will build a dike (consisting of blocks of compacted rock) for the retention of the thicker and heavier tailings. In parallel, the transport and storage of rocks that will be used in the construction of the structure is in progress;
- Vale will install more hydraulic barriers and small dams to assist in the tailings control process;
- The company is also studying the implementation of a Water Treatment Station (ETA) to reduce the turbidity of the water in the Ferro-Carvão stream. The purpose is to return the cleaned water to the Paraopeba River;
- The company has also begun removing the tailings that blocked a stretch of the Alberto Flores Avenue and the installation of a metal barrier to prevent the tailings from covering the road again;
- Construction of a 50-meter metal bridge to restore access to the communities of Parque da Cachoeira and Córrego do Feijão to the central area of Brumadinho.
- Section 2 (10 to 30 kilometer area that stretches to the city of Juatuba):
- Vale is mobilizing and installing equipment that will be used to dredge the coarsest debris, like sand and stones. The main objectives are cleaning and de-sanding the Paraopeba river channel;
- The residue will be collected by two dredgers and will be disposed of properly, outside of the Permanent Preservation Area (APP) of the river.
- Stretch 3 (170 kilometer stretch of the Paraopeba River between Juatuba and the Retiro Baixo Plant):
- Installation of five turbidity barriers (membranes): three in the Pará de Minas region and two others in the municipalities of Juatuba and Betim, before the Igarapé Thermoelectric Plant;
- Specific monitoring show that the efficiency of barriers installed in the river imply in a 10% to 15% reduction in its water turbidity levels.
Dams
- 10 upstream dams - currently inactive - will be decommissioned within three years;
- Decommissioning is the process of ending use of a dam permanently. After the works are carried out, the remaining structure is no longer characterized as a dam under the applicable legislation;
- By order of Brazil's National Mining Agency, Vale raised the emergency status of the Sul Superior (Barão de Cocais); B3/B4 and Vargem Grande (Nova Lima); Forquilhas I, II and III and Grupo (Ouro Preto) dams to Level 2;
- Vale relocated about to 700 people living in the Self-Rescue Zone (area within a 10km radius downstream of the dam) in the municipalities of Barão de Cocais, Nova Lima and Ouro Preto;
- Of this total, about 500 are staying in hotels and the others preferred to stay at relatives' homes;
- In total, Vale has accommodated 286 people in Brumadinho. Of those, 208 are staying in guesthouses, hotels and homes rented by Vale, while 78 preferred to stay with their relatives and friends;
- Breakdown of the rescued population by dam:
- Barão de Cocais, Nova Lima and Ouro Preto:
- Sul Superior: approximately 450
- Forquilhas I, II and III: four people
- B3/B4: approximately 250 people
- Vargem Grande: approximately 40
Source: Vale
