UPDATE: Death toll from Brazil dam collapse climbs to 34

The death toll from the collapse of a dam in Brazil yesterday has climbed to 34, authorities have revealed.

Further, Brazilian officials say about 300 people remain missing following the collapse at an iron ore mine in the south-eastern region of the country.

The rupture of the dam caused a sea of muddy sludge to bury the mine’s cafeteria, where workers were having lunch.

Rescue teams are scouring the site near the town of Brumadinho, in the state Minas Gerais.

Officials say there is still no clear indication of what caused the failure of the dam, which is owned by Brazil's largest mining company, Vale.

However, reports say US$1.3 billion has been frozen from Vale’s accounts to help fund the recovery work and handle damages.

Media reports say emergency services used helicopters and earth-moving machinery in the search for survivors.

Some 50 people were rescued from the sludge and 23 people were taken to hospital, but Minas Gerais State Governor Romeu Zema said the chances of finding more survivors were slim.

"We're likely to just be recovering bodies," he said, adding that "those involved in this tragedy should be punished".

Relatives of the missing have been demanding information on their loved ones.

"My five-year-old nephew is asking me if his dad died. What do I tell him?" asked one woman asked.

President Jair Bolsonaro, who flew over the disaster area today in a helicopter, posted a message on Twitter saying it was hard not to get emotional after seeing the scale of the devastation.

He said he had accepted an offer by Israel to send search equipment that could find people buried in the mud.

Earlier today, Vale was fined an initial sum of US$66.5 million by Brazil's Environmental Protection Agency in relation to the incident.

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