Fire at Rio’s Shopping Tijuca Kills Two as Investigation Shuts Complex

Overview

• Police identified the dead as supervisor Anderson Aguiar do Prado and brigadista Emellyn Silva Aguiar Menezes.
• The blaze started in the Bellart decoration store in the subsoil, a hard-to-reach area that filled with dense smoke.
• Firefighters deployed up to 65 personnel from 15 units with 22 vehicles, using mechanical ventilation and autonomous breathing equipment.
• Three people were recorded as injured, the mall remains closed for overhaul and forensic work, and nearby streets face partial closures with controlled vehicle retrieval.
• The cause is under investigation, with a preliminary hypothesis pointing to an air-conditioning fault as witness reports of delayed alarms and guidance face scrutiny.