A gun battle erupted inRio de Janeiro’s Vidigal favela as police clashed with suspected Comando Vermelho members, leaving around 200 tourists trapped at a popular sunrise viewpoint. The fighting broke out along the access routes to Morro Dois Irmãos, turning a routine early-morning hike into a lockdown above the city.
Visitors were forced to sit on the ground asgunfireechoed through the hills and a helicopter circled overhead. The hiking trail, a well-known sunrise viewpoint overlooking the world-famousIpanema Beach, starts just east of the neighbourhood.
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Authorities from the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bahia and Rio’s Civil Police were attempting to detain suspected members of the Comando Vermelho gang believed to be sheltering in Vidigal, according to TV Globo.
As officers moved in, they and suspected gang members exchanged gunfire, forcing the main path up the hill to be closed and leaving visitors unable to get down.
Footage posted online shows the group sitting on the ground as daylight breaks, with a police helicopter circling above while shots echo in the distance. Portuguese tourist Matilda Oliveiro was at the summit with her sister Rita, waiting for sunrise, when the situation suddenly changed.
Matilda Oliveiro told TV Globo: "We had waited for sunrise and, suddenly, the guides asked us to sit down and we started hearing gunshots.
"They did their job. It's always scary, but it was controlled as much as possible. We passed the police on the way, and the situation was already under control."
The group was eventually escorted down after roughly half an hour, according to local reports.
Source: Daily Express :: World Feed
