SAO PAULO — An abandoned high-rise building occupied by squatters in downtown Sao Paulo caught fire and collapsed Tuesday, sending chunks of fiery debris crashing into neighboring buildings and surrounding streets.
Firefighters said at least one person had been killed in the collapse and that there could be more.
The building, a former federal police headquarters, caught fire around 1:30 a.m. local time. Firefighters set up a perimeter and worked to evacuate people.
Less than two hours later, as flames engulfed the building, which was at least 20 stories, it collapsed. Globo TV, which was covering the fire, captured the destruction. Images showed the floors falling on themselves like dominoes and debris flying in all directions.
By late Tuesday morning, several families who had fled the building were camping out in front of a nearby church, where neighbors and local businesses were dropping off supplies: bags of bread, milk, bottles of water and even some bags of used clothing or shoes.
Lohany Michely, 37, said she was asleep with her boyfriend and dog in their apartment on the third floor of the building when she began hearing people yell about a fire. Seeing smoke, the couple left with their dog, then watched the building collapse about 45 minutes later.
“Entire families lost everything,” she said. “People think that people who live in an occupation are animals. We are not animals. We are human beings.”
Romulo de Souza, 49, said he was part of a squatter occupation in the neighboring building. He said he watched families evacuating.
“Happily the majority got out,” he said, adding that residents believed the fire could have been started by a gas leak.
Firefighter Lt. Andre Elias told Globo TV that at least one person had been killed in the collapse. Authorities were working to locate several others who were missing.
Clearing debris and accounting for people who had been in the building could likely take days. Several hours after the collapse, smoldering debris continued to emit smoke.
The fire also burned part of a neighboring building, and authorities said three surrounding buildings were evacuated as a precaution.
The fire and collapse are sure to put a spotlight on occupations in Sao Paulo, South America’s largest city. Several dozen buildings have been occupied in downtown by highly organized fair-housing groups that take over and then fight for ownership. Many such dwellings are run like regular apartment buildings, with doormen and residents paying monthly fees. Others are less established and more precarious.
In a July 2017 story on the occupations , The Associated Press reported that around 350 families were living in the former police headquarters. Local media on Tuesday reported that between 50 and 150 were currently living there, underscoring the sometimes fluid nature of such makeshift dwellings.
“It’s a building that didn’t have the most minimal conditions to live in,” Sao Paulo Gov. Marcio Franca, who visited the site, told news site UOL, adding that “the occupation should never have been allowed.”
The area, known as “Centro,” began losing residents in the 1970s and 80s after several fires broke out and another business district developed. Since then, several city administrations have led campaigns aimed at beautifying and redeveloping the area, which now hosts many of the city’s homeless and has numerous blocks occupied by crack addicts.
Former Sao Paulo mayor Joao Doria, who recently stepped down to run for governor, cracked down on squatter communities as part of a plan to revitalize the downtown area.
Doria argued downtown Sao Paulo should showcase the city, the engine of Brazil’s economy and one of the hemisphere’s most important financial centers. Fair-housing activists, on the other hand, argue that the area could offer affordable housing to tens of thousands of people.
During a brief visit to the area Tuesday, President Michel Temer told reporters that the government would help those affected by the fire.
“We will provide assistance to the victims of this disaster,” said Temer, who has been charged with corruption and has approval ratings in the single digits. He did not provide details and was whisked away by security as several people shouted obscenities at him.
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Peter Prengaman reported from Rio de Janeiro. AP photographer Andre Penner contributed to this report from Sao Paulo.
