In Brazil, mudslides in a tourist resort south of Rio de Janeiro have washed away a hotel, killing at least 14 people. Thirty others are missing.

Rescue teams looking for survivors under heaps of rubble and mud say there is little chance of anyone being found alive. In the past few days, the region has been lashed by torrential rain. Floods and landslides had already claimed 18 lives. Three rivers in the northern part of Rio have broken their banks. Rainfall is abating somewhat but the authorities are calling on everyone living in risk areas to move elsewhere. The landslides are particularly dangerous on the steep slopes surrounding the city, which are covered by sprawling slums.

(Photo: Flickr / Alice Springs)