Major Fire Erupts at Samba School in Rio's Maré Complex

A significant fire destroyed a warehouse used by the Escola de Samba Gato de Bonsucesso on Wednesday, December 24, in the Nova Holanda community.

The incident occurred in the afternoon on Rua Sargento Silva Nunes within the Complexo da Maré. The facility, known as a galpão, served as the samba school's rehearsal space.

Witnesses reported that fireworks were stored inside the building. The fire originated in a property located deep inside the favela and resulted in loud explosions. These explosions caused significant concern among the local population.

Thick smoke was visible from major transit corridors, including the Linha Amarela and Linha Vermelha. A water tank located on the premises also caught fire.

The warehouse is surrounded by residential housing and is situated about two blocks from the 22º BPM (Maré). Firefighting crews from the Corpo de Bombeiros arrived at the scene shortly after 12:15 PM to begin extinguishing the flames.

The fire broke out at a warehouse located on Rua Sargento Silva Nunes in the Nova Holanda community. This area is part of the larger Complexo da Maré in the Zona Norte of Rio de Janeiro.

The specific structure involved serves as the quadra (rehearsal space) for the Escola de Samba Gato de Bonsucesso. This type of facility is central to the cultural operations of samba schools, used for storing costumes, floats, and instruments.

According to information provided by witnesses, the space was being used to store fireworks (fogos de artifícios) at the time of the incident. The warehouse is situated in a densely populated area, surrounded by residential homes.

The proximity to security forces was noted in the report, with the facility located approximately two quarteirões (blocks) from the 22º BPM (Maré) police station.

The blaze began in a property located in the miolo da favela (the interior of the favela). The fire rapidly grew in intensity, leading to explosions that were heard throughout the region.

These explosions served as a primary source of alarm for moradores (residents) in the vicinity. The intensity of the fire produced massive columns of fumaça (smoke).

These smoke columns were thick enough to be seen from distant points, specifically mentioned as the Linha Amarela and Linha Vermelha, which are major highways in Rio de Janeiro.

During the fire, a caixa d'água (water tank) situated on the property also caught fire, complicating firefighting efforts. The specific contents of the warehouse and the precise cause of the fire had not been determined at the time of the initial report.

Local residents reacted immediately to the emergency. Images captured by media helicopters showed moradores attempting to contain the flames using improvised methods.

Residents were seen using baldes de água (buckets of water) to try to control the fire. Simultaneously, other residents evacuated their homes, removing personal belongings out of fear that the fire would spread to adjacent structures.

Emergency services were dispatched to the location. Agents of the Corpo de Bombeiros arrived at the scene shortly after 12h15 (12:15 PM) to engage in active fire suppression.