NEWS AMERICAS, RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, Sat. Aug. 27, 2011: Five people are dead in Brazil after a tram derailed in the city of Rio de Janeiro.
Local media reported one of those killed was driver Nelson Correa da Silva, 57 while at least 27 others were injured on the Santa Teresa line, a historic tram line connecting the city centre with the Santa Teresa neighborhood.
The tram, a popular attraction, offering panoramic views of the city, came off the rails and skidded down a Rio street for 55 yards before crashing into a lamp post.
The accident comes two months after a French tourist died falling from a Rio tram as it was crossing a bridge. Opened in 1896, Rio’s tram is one of the oldest electrical tram systems in South America.
