01x02 - Pesadelo

[bunniefuu]

[foreboding music plays]

[embers crackling]

[Benedito Ferreira] A reporter

on TV was saying,

"A large-scale fire

has completely engulfed

the Flamengo training center."

I can still hear that.

[Filipe Chrysman] We couldn't believe it.

We were all devastated when we found out

that we had lost our friends.

[Fernanda Alves] I got the news

as soon as I arrived at work for the day.

[Andréia Candido] I got in

the first taxi that stopped.

It was the longest ride of my life.

And the hardest ride.

[Fernanda] When I got on the bus,

I heard a woman next to me say,

"Oh my goodness,

a group of teenagers have died."

"There was an accident

at the Vulture's Nest."

I asked the Virgin Mary,

"Why did you let my son die?"

"You shouldn't have let him die."

[man 1] A source contacted me, saying,

"I have information

about the Vulture's Nest accident."

I stopped and said,

"Léo, this changes everything."

We have a b*mb on our hands.

FROM DREAMS TO TRAGEDY:

THE FIRE THAT SHOOK BRAZILIAN FOOTBALL

[man 2, in Portuguese]

Breaking news. This is just in.

A large-scale fire

is happening right now

at the Vulture's Nest,

Flamengo's training center,

in the western part of Rio de Janeiro.

[helicopter engine whirring]

FEBRUARY 8, 2019

[man 3] "Something has happened

at the Nest."

"I think a fire has broken out."

"A fire at Vulture's Nest, where

the junior players are accommodated."

JOURNALIS

That's how they first reported it.

And I couldn't believe it.

I texted my colleagues saying,

"I'm heading into the newsroom right now."

That was a really terrible day.

Because you never want

to report news like that, you know?

[woman 1, in Portuguese]

The fire started in the early morning.

The fire department was promptly called.

They took approximately

one hour to control the flames.

[woman 2] It seems

the fire was in a storage area,

and firefighters are still at the scene.

[woman 3] The training center

had no light,

so a candle may have been used.

Did that cause the expl*si*n?

[Marília Barros, in English] The phone

rang. It was a friend from work.

She said, "Marília, is Arthur living

at the Nest?" I said, "Yes."

ARTHUR VINÍCIUS' MOM

She said, "Mrs. Raquel was

talking about a fire at the Nest."

I said, "What?"

[crowd clamoring]

[man 4, in Portuguese]

The civil police are investigating.

[man 5] We received the information

that four employees

and four boys in the youth league

have died.

That's the information we have,

but it's all very preliminary.

I don't even know if it was the dorm.

Was it?

The club's dorms.

-[man 6] The dorms or a container?

-The dorms.

[shutters clicking]

[siren wailing]

[Lêda Pisetta, in English] I got

to my school and checked my phone.

There was a message. It was from my aunt,

in the family group chat.

BERNARDO PISETTA'S MOM

It said, "Fire at Vulture's Nest."

BERNARDO PISETTA'S DAD

I said, "That's strange." I pulled over

and immediately checked my phone.

And I saw it was true. "Oh my God."

And then my heart just

I froze. And then I started calling him.

No answer. Again. No answer, no answer.

I said, "He probably used

all the minutes on his plan."

"The power went out because of the fire."

[woman 4, in Portuguese]

The fire broke out in the youth dormitory.

[man 7] If the fire started in the AC unit

or with an expl*si*n

[woman 5] It looks like the civil police

have just arrived on the scene

[woman 6] It is still difficult

to get information.

We're waiting for an official statement.

[Benedito] By the time

the firefighters arrived,

the fire was mostly extinguished.

There were pockets of fire, but no flames.

Nothing else could be done.

SECURITY

[in Portuguese] There are lists being

circulated, but nothing is confirmed.

I don't know.

[reporters speaking Portuguese]

[siren blaring]

[woman 7] We're trying to speak

to a young man who is a Flamengo player,

but he's very scared.

He doesn't want to talk.

[Marcos Marinho, in English] I turned on

the TV. Every channel was reporting live,

with helicopters.

SPORTS MANAGER

I didn't know what to think.

I had an athlete inside the dorm.

[man 8, in Portuguese] The place was

completely overtaken by flames.

Despite our best efforts to get in

and look for survivors,

all we found were dead bodies.

[in English] I was

completely drained emotionally.

STRIKER

But, I don't know,

when I saw my friends, my teammates,

I would try to distract them

with conversation.

I could see they were all distraught

and very upset.

They were in shock. But sometimes,

I just couldn't do it, you know?

I would try to talk, but I was upset too.

I would think about what happened

and get so sad,

I wouldn't be able to say anything.

[dramatic music plays]

[man 9, in Portuguese] Secretary,

do you know who the victims are?

Yes, we have a few names.

[siren blaring]

PRINCE

[Fernanda, in English] I imagined

the worst. I said, "I left Wendel there."

My heart started racing.

They were saying many people had died.

They didn't have a number.

I didn't know how many had died.

-[in Portuguese] What's his name?

-Bernardo. Here.

-Bernardo?

-Yes.

[woman 8] Do you know his last name?

Bernardo Let me check.

Pisetta.

[Darlei, in English] I finally got ahold

of someone at Flamengo.

"Yes, there's been an accident."

I said, "I'm trying to find out

about Bernardo."

He said, "We don't have any names yet.

But you'll hear from us soon."

I said, "Hey, I need

to know about my son."

"We'll have news soon." "All right."

And then I started telling myself,

"Don't worry. They're young."

"They're strong and smart.

I'm sure they managed to find a way out."

But what I didn't know then was

how big the fire was. How serious.

I knew nothing.

I turned around and came straight home.

I said, "Lêda, we're going to Rio."

"Whatever's happened, we're going."

CHRISTIAN ESMÉRIO'S MOM

So.

When I first got there, I had no idea.

I didn't know what had actually happened.

I had no idea how it happened.

I wasn't even told when it happened.

I was just sitting out front, alone,

for a very long time, just waiting.

I was hoping for news,

for any kind of news.

But no one told me anything

about what was going on.

Eventually, they came out

and spoke to all the family members.

[in Portuguese] All the parents

to the front, please.

[man 10] Make some room for them.

-The parents

-Make some space, please.

Just a minute. We're live.

[woman 9] There is a list

with the names of the victims.

We're still awaiting confirmation.

We'll have the names

as the day progresses.

[man 11, in English] We're hearing rumors

that four of the kids

who were players in the youth league

were expected

[woman 10, in Portuguese]

players between 14 and 17 years old,

and it appears

that Flamengo staff are among the dead.

[man crying]

[woman 11] Are you family?

I only know what they're saying publicly.

They haven't officially told me anything.

I assume, since they rented us a hotel

I'm going to the hotel now.

They said forensics is investigating,

and they'll come get us later.

I assume Samuel is dead.

[man 12] Ten players

from Flamengo's youth league

died in a fire in the early morning

in a dormitory

at the club's training center.

[man 13, in English] Imagine.

A shipping container catches fire

and ten children die.

Ten young men, in what was shaping up

to be the greatest tragedy in the history

of the country's largest club.

I mean, this is completely unprecedented.

Everything is different now.

We've never covered anything like it

in this country.

[man 14, in Portuguese] We have the list

of names of the ten confirmed deaths

from this tragedy at the training center,

Flamengo's Vulture's Nest

in Vargem Grande, in the West Zone.

Arthur Vinícius.

DEFENDER

[somber music playing]

[Marília, in English] On the way there,

I found out Arthur had died.

I didn't know when I left. And then

I collapsed.

[man 14] Pablo Henrique, 14 years old.

And also Rykelmo de Souza Viana,

from the youth league.

Christian Esmério Candido, 15 years old.

He was the goalie

for the youth league's national team.

[Andréia, in English]

They were searching for him,

they were searching for him,

they were searching for him.

They never actually said my son was dead.

And that's when

I was sure that

that I had lost my son.

[man 15, in Portuguese]

Midfielder Gedson Santos, 14 years old,

born in Itararé, São Paulo.

[woman 12] Bernardo Pisetta,

born in Santa Catarina,

joined Flamengo in 2018.

[in English] When we parked the car

at the airport,

we got a text from his grandfather.

"Bernardo's dream is over."

He saw it on TV.

My world collapsed.

That was

When a child loses their parents,

they become an orphan.

But when a parent loses their child,

what do they become?

[woman 13, in Portuguese] Jorge Eduardo,

15 years old, a midfielder.

Vitor Isaías, 14 years old, a striker.

[Marinho, in English] Vitor Isaías was

one of my athletes.

I fell apart, you know?

In a time like this

Usually, when I talk to a family,

it's to tell them a club has given them

a wonderful opportunity.

But this time, I took a boy from his home

to fulfill his dreams

and brought him back in a coffin.

[woman 13, in Portuguese] Samuel Thomas

and Áthila Paixão, both 14 years old.

ESPN NOW

[sobs]

We'll be back after a short break.

FUTURE INTERRUPTED - 10 ETERNAL CHAMPIONS

DIE AT TRAINING CENTER

THE GREATEST PAIN IN THE WORLD

DREAMS TURN TO ASHES

IN TRAINING CENTER TRAGEDY

DREAMS INTERRUPTED

NATION IN MOURNING

[Sebastião] This is not the news

I want to be sharing with you.

I wanted to report on Samuel

kicking the ball, scoring a goal,

and living his dream,

which has been interrupted.

[in English] I had an image

of him at the Nest entrance.

He kissed my hand

and said, "Bless you, Mom."

I said, "God bless you, son."

He said, "I love you,"

and I said, "I love you too."

You just become numb, you know?

The wake, the funeral

You get home and say,

"I'll never see him again."

You learn to live with the longing.

PRESIDENT OF FLAMENGO

[in Portuguese] Well,

good afternoon, everyone.

I just want to say

that we are all devastated.

This certainly is

the greatest tragedy

this club has faced in the last 123 years,

with the loss of ten lives.

All of us from the club are grieving.

We are all in a state of great sorrow.

It's not easy to talk now.

Thank you, and I'm sorry.

Thank you.

[ominous music plays]

[birds screeching]

[woman 14] The Vulture's Nest,

Flamengo's training center,

will be inspected today.

The aim is to look for

potential irregularities

where ten young athletes died in a fire.

[in English] There were

plenty of skeletons in the closet.

No license, several warnings.

No one knew about that.

They kept it a secret inside the club.

[woman 15, in Portuguese]

The club's training center

was not certified by the fire department.

Still, it was operating normally.

In the plans sent to authorities,

instead of the dormitory that burned down,

there was a parking lot.

Rio City Hall ordered

the facility to be closed down in 2017,

and since then,

they have fined Flamengo 30 times.

[in English] The investigation identified

a series of interventions by authorities.

PROSECUTOR

FLAMENGO PAID R$ 5,372.06

OVER NINE INFRACTIONS

Unfortunately,

not enough to prevent the tragedy.

CITY HALL STARTS INVESTIGATION

FLAMENGO PAID 10 OF 31 FINES,

CLAIMS CLUB IGNORED ORDER

BAN

[Ivo] Dozens of fines, interdictions,

permits that were denied,

no official certificate

from the fire department.

The more we dug into the situation,

the more we discovered.

NEST DID NOT HAVE PERMI

[Cezar] It was scary, right?

No one imagined that Flamengo

didn't have the basic documentation

ill*gal BUILDING

IN MILLION-DOLLAR TRAINING CENTER

required to operate a business.

So, you start asking questions.

"They didn't have the proper permits?

Were there other problems?"

[man 16, in Portuguese] City Hall

shut down the Vulture's Nest today,

Flamengo's training center.

[woman 16] Flamengo's board of directors

met at the club's headquarters

today in Gávea

and set up a crisis team

divided into two groups.

One to assist the families and victims,

the other to collect documentation

regarding operating permits

and licenses for the Vulture's Nest.

[man 17] The fact is

that a tragic accident has occurred.

It wasn't due to

a lack of investment on Flamengo's part,

or due to negligence by Flamengo.

After all, this is our greatest asset.

The group who was

sleeping in there was our future.

[suspenseful music plays]

[Filipe, in English] After the tragedy,

we went to the police station in Recreio

to give our statements.

42ND POLICE PRECINC

FEBRUARY 8, 2019

The sergeant came to me and said,

"We need you to go to the station."

"I know it's been a rough night

and you've been through a lot,

but you have to come down to the station

and tell us what happened."

[Filipe] A few guys couldn't talk.

They were so upset,

they just couldn't stop crying.

I was too,

because of everything that had happened.

Initially, I couldn't say a word.

I had all the thoughts in my head,

but I couldn't speak.

[Benedito] I was trying

trying to understand

everything that had just happened.

My statement was

Well, it was complicated,

because the person who was questioning me

was asking me about specific details

that I couldn't possibly give at the time.

But I remember one of her questions.

"Were you asleep at the time

the events took place?"

I remember,

that was the first question she asked me.

I got home at, like, four in the morning.

The whole way home, I felt sick.

I took a shower and went straight to bed.

And I stayed there for several days.

PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE,

STATE OF RIO DE JANEIRO

[woman 17] The Vulture's Nest fire

happened on a Friday morning.

Flamengo officials sought out the

Prosecutor's Office on Saturday morning.

We then sat down

with the Flamengo senior staff

to discuss procedures

and figure out the next steps.

PUBLIC DEFENDER

[Landim, in Portuguese] It's in

our interest to support the families

of all of these boys

in the best and most timely way possible.

As you all know, sometimes

legal proceedings take a long time

to reach a conclusion.

[Guedes, in English] We set up

a negotiation process with Flamengo.

Initially, they were very willing,

very accommodating.

The club officials would say,

"We're going to take care of this."

"It was a terrible tragedy."

"It's not our fault, but we want

to solve this as quickly as possible."

Right after the fire,

Flamengo gave us a lot of support.

They set us up with therapists

and provided us with accommodation.

They also paid for the cost

of flying our families in to be with us.

[Guedes] We heard

from all the officials present

that Flamengo wasn't going to attempt

to bargain with the boys' lives.

That was their stated position

at the time.

The idea was to come up with a set amount

that the club would pay

to each of the families.

We had the document drawn up.

Flamengo went through it

with their lawyers

and requested a few adjustments.

After a little back and forth,

we all agreed to the terms,

and Flamengo said they would sign it.

FLAMENGO MAKES STATEMENT,

GIVES NO DEADLINE FOR AGREEMEN

We went to the families

and explained the offer,

and how much each family would receive.

FAMILIES AWAIT NEW OFFER

The families agreed.

Then, just when everything seemed

to be moving toward a resolution,

Flamengo hired a different law firm,

and they said the agreed-upon value was

too high, that it wasn't fair,

and the club was no longer willing

to negotiate under those terms.

FLAMINGO DENIES ABANDONING VICTIMS

CITES ABOVE-AVERAGE OFFER

[Darlei] They hid behind

their new lawyers.

FAMILIES SEEK COMPENSATION AND ANSWERS

So, of course,

the families also had to get lawyers.

It was really a shame, because

it all could have been resolved so easily.

[in Portuguese] It's in our interest

to reach an agreement with all of them.

What we can't do, honestly, is

pay a stratospheric amount

that would, let's say, greatly affect

A value completely out of proportion

with what has been discussed

or what has been decreed

by judges in similar cases in Brazil.

Flamengo won't discuss

matters being adjudicated.

I'm not here

I'm not here

to give details on the investigation.

[reporters talking]

Flamengo will meet on Monday

to address that issue.

I just learned about it today.

I don't know. I appreciate your time.

Thank you. We're done.

[man 18] Rodrigo, when will Flamengo

stop being negligent and answer?

[man 19] Are you turning your back

to the press and public opinion?

[man 20] Are you ignoring the questions?

PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE

STATE OF RIO DE JANEIRO

A new meeting will take place on Monday

at the Rio de Janeiro Prosecutor's Office

with the public defender's office

and Flamengo,

this time to establish

compensation amounts

for the families

of the victims the Vulture's Nest fire.

[Darlei, in English]

The people from Flamengo got in touch,

saying we needed to go to Rio.

They even paid for our flight.

[Guedes] There was

a big mediation meeting scheduled.

When we arrived, we were told that

the president couldn't attend the meeting

because he had

another important appointment.

That alone was very disappointing

because the families fully expected

the president to be there,

to take responsibility, and,

most importantly, to issue an apology.

[Marília] That was the saddest day.

For me, it was even sadder

than my son's funeral.

It's hard to discuss the value of a life.

You can't put a price on anyone's life.

[Guedes] The president never showed up.

Instead, he sent the vice president,

along with the lawyers.

When they got there, the first thing

we asked was, "What's the new offer?"

"Why are we here?

Tell us what Flamengo is proposing."

And the head lawyer said

he didn't come with any offers

because he hadn't received any.

[Cristiano Esmério] We walked

into the room,

and their vice president

in charge of legal affairs said,

"I have to leave in 15 minutes.

I have another meeting."

That totally broke us.

It broke us. It was

CHRISTIAN ESMÉRIO'S FATHER

completely heartless.

What could possibly be more important

than this meeting for Flamengo?

We felt completely disregarded.

I was really upset by that.

I snapped. I stood up

and slammed my fist on the table.

I was so angry. I had just lost my son,

and now Flamengo was putting us

through that and ignoring all of us.

[Guedes] The family members, who until

then had been very patient and restrained,

now expressed all their anger

and frustration,

and it turned into a messy shouting match.

Mothers were crying

and fathers were enraged.

To make matters worse,

as we left the mediation room,

the press were all gathered at the door.

It was a complete disaster in every sense.

[in Portuguese] We came here like fools.

We've been abandoned by everyone.

We don't feel embraced by anyone,

especially Flamengo.

Where was Flamengo's president?

I feel forsaken by Flamengo.

I haven't, like Cristiano said,

received a single phone call

from Flamengo.

PABLO HENRIQUE'S DAD

I received no support, not even a gesture.

This child I will never hold him again.

BOARD QUIE

AFTER MEETING AUTHORITIES

[Guedes, in English] Any attempt

at collective settlement collapsed.

FAMILIES ALLEGE NEGLEC

AND REJECT NEGOTIATIONS

The club's new law firm

did not specialize in conciliation.

FAMILIES CRITICIZE FLAMENGO'S COLDNESS

They were a crisis management firm.

VP SAYS CLUB WON'T OFFER MORE

Their strategy was to divide and conquer.

FAMILIES CITE "t*rture"

AND REJECT AGREEMEN

Flamengo started contacting

the families to negotiate individually.

[in Portuguese] It's a right

that families have.

They can hire a lawyer and sue Flamengo.

Is that what we would like? No.

But we have no control over it.

[Burlá, in English] Even before

money was being discussed,

the families were already saying,

"Flamengo doesn't care about us."

The club

should have made a gesture of good faith,

even if an official settlement hadn't

been reached yet.

They could have done something

to demonstrate some empathy.

[in Portuguese] In the beginning,

many people wanted to get on TV

by accusing Flamengo and the management.

The prosecutor's office,

the public defender's office,

everyone wanted to be seen,

to pass judgment, et cetera.

But we had

a good relationship with the families.

[Cristiano, in English] After everything

the families went through,

the loss of our sons,

the lack of information

on the day of the accident,

we finally woke up and realized

that Flamengo couldn't care less

about us or our children.

[woman 18, in Portuguese] According

to the police, it seems the fire started

because of a short circuit in an AC unit.

[woman 19] The dormitory consumed

by the flames

was in a temporary facility

called a housing container.

[Cezar, in English] I didn't know there

were still container structures

in use there.

The container itself is not the issue.

Some containers are designed

for that purpose,

to function as accommodation.

The problem is that it caught fire.

Why did it burn?

CARLOS ÉBOLI CRIMINOLOGY INSTITUTE

[man 21] The cause of the fire was

a faulty AC unit located in room 6.

A short circuit occurred

in the motor bearing.

FORENSIC EXPER

The resulting friction

then caused the unit to overheat.

The sparks reached the furniture,

wardrobes, and beds.

The structure of the shipping container

accelerated the fire

and transformed it into a large-scale

blaze of great magnitude.

[man 22] You can see

there is an absence of plugs and outlets.

FORENSIC EXPER

This is evidence of carelessness

in the use of electricity.

[Coelho] They were improvising

as the need arose.

You see?

"We need a power supply right here."

So they just ran a wire.

[Satiro] Wires were run without conduits.

Coarse splices were made

with no insulation.

A lot of workarounds.

There were some omissions

by the maintenance staff at Flamengo.

[Andréia] They were negligent.

That is a fact.

It's a fact they were negligent.

What were they thinking?

Why were the children sleeping there?

A team that was so important to me

and my family was the team that

took my son from me.

[Marília] I thought my son was safe there.

[sobs] And that's where

I lost him.

[tense music plays]

[Burlá] A source I'd been talking to

about the case contacted me and said,

"I have some interesting information

for you to take a look at."

MAY 2018

When I saw it, I said,

"This could be good."

The information seemed solid,

so I went to my boss with an idea.

[buzzing]

We worked at UOL.

I was an editor, Léo was a reporter.

We were talking,

and he said, "Take a look."

"I think this would be really interesting

as part of our behind-the-scenes column."

I stopped and said, "Léo,

this is so much bigger than that."

"This changes everything."

"We have a b*mb on our hands."

[man 23, in Portuguese]

An email exchange reveals Flamengo knew

about electrical problems

at the Vulture's Nest.

[woman 20] The possibility of fire

was previously mentioned in emails

sent by an electrical company

hired by the club

in May of 2018.

[Burlá, in English]

The article contained a series of emails

that circulated inside Flamengo,

showing they were aware of the shipping

container's precarious condition.

There was an exchange of emails between

Flamengo's administrative management,

the general manager of the Nest,

who was a man named Marcelo Helman,

and a company called CBI.

The company had been hired to assess

and make necessary electrical repairs,

which included the area where

the boys had been assigned to sleep.

[Ivo] Inspection documents,

official communications

between the company and Flamengo,

going all the way up the chain

from staff to management to the director.

Luiz Humberto Costa Tavares,

then administrative manager

of the training center,

wrote in an email,

"Good afternoon, Marcelo."

"According to Mr. Adilson's assessment

in a previous report,

the situation is urgent and very risky."

"Irregularities include a circuit box,

a post near the cafeteria,

breakers, wiring on the grass,

and an additional

circuit box behind the dormitory."

This email was sent to Marcelo Helman,

who was the center's

executive administrative director.

It goes on to say,

"The irregularities listed

will not be dealt with at this time."

"As previously announced,

the site will be demolished

and replaced with new facilities

by the end of 2018."

"I remind you that,

in the event of inspection and fines,

any allegation, however obvious,

is not necessarily ill*gal,

and it's up to

the supervisory body in charge

to impose a penalty or to intervene."

This explicit information is acknowledged

by the recipient of these emails.

PROSECUTOR

The recipient, who is

one of the club's directors, simply says,

"Ignore it. Don't do anything."

"The structure is just temporary,

and we have plans in place to change it."

"Don't waste any time on that."

But between the time of giving

those instructions and February 8th,

a fire broke out.

1. CIRCUIT BREAKER AND WIRING IN GRASS

2. CIRCUIT BOX (POST NEXT TO CAFETERIA)

[Ivo] It's clear

they were aware of issues.

3. CIRCUIT BOX BEHIND DORMITORY

In an internal communication,

they mention a possible problem

and give instructions

on how to deal with inspectors.

So then, do you respond to the inspection

with, "We will fix it"?

Or do you say, "This is acceptable"?

Their decision was, "We won't touch that.

Construction will begin soon."

"Everything will be fixed

by the end of 2018."

PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE

ATTACHED EMAIL ABOUT FIRE: "WORKAROUNDS"

[Burlá] It was very clear that,

at the very least, Flamengo was negligent.

It's right there in the email exchange.

Flamengo is basically saying,

"We know this place is a trap."

[electricity humming and crackling]

[somber music plays]

[music fades]