The scandal involving Braskem and the city of Maceió began in March 2018, in the neighborhood of Pinheiro, just a ten-minute drive from the city center. Weeks before, heavy rains had made cracks appear in several of the area’s houses and streets, signaling that something was definitely not right.
But on March 3, the ground shook. Thousands of people heard a loud bang and felt buildings rattle. More cracks appeared in Pinheiro after a tremor measuring 2.5 on the Richter scale. Fissures widened and became more and more common over the coming days, opening craters on the neighborhood’s streets.
Roads began to sink. Holes reached up to 10 meters deep and 280 meters wide, and people started to flee from their homes.
The culprit, it turned out, was underground.
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This episode used music from Uppbeat. License codes: Aspire by Pryces (B6TUQLVYOWVKY02S). Arrival by Clemens Ruh (NQFDSSGAGK3LP9UJ). Call Of Fate by Alex Besss (KWZDOR7YOM4PD3TN). Tunnel by Danijel Zambo (8ZBXT11G16CVWCWD). Epic Chase by Aaron Paul Low (3KYI31NBKEWAYAUE).
In this episode:
- Euan Marshall is a deputy editor at The Brazilian Report and hosts Explaining Brazil in the absence of Gustavo Ribeiro. He mostly covers environmental issues.
Background reading:
- In 2021, special reporter Renato Alves went to Maceió to investigate the damage caused by Braskem. The result was an award-winning report. The Brazilian Report won the 2021 EPPY Awards for best news or event feature video.
- The EPPY Awards are held yearly, presented by Editor & Publisher magazine, with the goal of celebrating media-affiliated websites that do “outstanding jobs in creating online services.”
Do you have a suggestion for our next Explaining Brazil podcast? Drop us a line at [email protected]
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