Brazil. The death of 234 people in a nightclub fire in southern Brazil sparked a wave of inspections to prevent a new tragedy and show that the country is doing its homework ahead of the soccer World Cup and the Olympic Games.
Survivors of Sunday's catastrophe at the Kiss nightclub in the city of Santa Maria said the venue was overcrowded, the evacuation route poorly signposted, the only door blocked and the fire extinguishers were not working.
Not to mention the apparent cause of the fire: a flare lit by a band of musicians in open violation of safety regulations.
"I have no doubt that the parameters (of security) are going to change in Brazil," said the deputy mayor of Manaus, Bosco Saraiva from the city in the heart of the Amazon. "Unfortunately the situation is serious," he emphasized.
Authorities revised the death toll, which rose from 231 to 234 because some of the victims apparently had not been counted.
In Santa Maria, a university town in the prosperous state of Rio de Grande do Sul, relatives and friends of the victims demanded answers as mourning gave way to anger over the tragedy.
The disaster also put Latin America's largest economy in front of the mirror of its own shortcomings and stoked debate over the country's preparedness for the gigantic global sporting events it will host over the next three years.
President Dilma Rousseff, shocked after visiting the site of the fire, was very clear in a meeting with several mayors: "In the face of this tragedy we have the duty to assume the commitment and ensure that it will never be repeated."
The mayor of Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city with a vibrant nightlife scene, ordered a review of safety regulations for large gatherings of people and called a meeting with entertainment entrepreneurs.
The press reported similar control efforts in other large cities such as Brasilia, Cuiabá, Fortaleza and Porto Alegre, all of them hosts of the next World Cup as well as Manaus and Sao Paulo.
Gilberto Carvalho, an influential adviser to Rousseff, said the Santa Maria tragedy could lead to the passage of new security laws.
