Over 153 people were killed in a recent landslide that hit a Rio de Janeiro slum in early April. Over sixty houses were buried in the disaster, and it is believed that as many as 200 lives may have been lost. The slum had been built on top of a garbage heap that had been accumulating for decades, which made is especially susceptible for the ground to give out.

These landslides are caused by heavy rains and are most dangerous to the poorly placed slums and shanty towns surrounding Rio. Sixteen inches of rain have fallen there over the past month and 10,000 houses are currently labeled as at risk to future mudslides. City officials have pledged to evict citizens in at risk areas but it is unclear whether they will provide these people a safer alternative location for them to live.

The city of Rio didn't seem to care about its many less privileged residents living in these slums until this recent public relations disaster, they now almost seem more concerned with saving face than actually caring for those affected. All districts of Rio were affected by the heavy rains, and this city of 6 million was basically shut down with damages everywhere, but most of the deaths occurring were in the lower class areas, due to unsafe structures and an unstable foundation.

The Rio they want you to see is the white sandy beaches, excessive parties, and the host for the future World Cup and Olympic games, while the shantytowns and slum are ignored. This disaster, though a horrible tragedy, may help serve to bring awareness to the plight and destitute situation of the lower classes in Rio, who have had nothing left to do but live on a mountain of garbage susceptible to deadly mudslides. Hopefully this unfortunate event can help to bring across action by the local and national government in Brazil to prevent situations like this from occurring in the future.