Burst dam forces evacuations in Brazil

Rushing water splits a road in two in southeast Brazil.
People use ropes to carry their belongings across a ravine and hoist furniture onto rooftops.
Constant rains sent have river levels soaring and burst a dam on Thursday in the state of Rio de Janeiro, where almost 20,000 people have lost their homes to floodwaters.
The army has deployed to help evacuate residents. Civil Defence agent Edson Pessanha.
(SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) CIVIL DEFENCE AGENT, EDSON PESSANHA, SAYING:
"We are removing people and leading them to a higher place with tents. Later, we will guide them to the closest schools."
Flooding is common in Brazil during the rainy season months of December and January.
900 people were killed and thousands uprooted last year in the mountainous Rio de Janeiro region as rivers of mud and water battered their towns.
Katharine Jackson, Reuters.