4 killed on Carnival float in Brazil, fire erupts after float strikes power line

By: Stan Lehman, Associated Press

SAO PAULO (AP) -- A fire on a Carnival float has killed four people and injured five in the Brazilian port city of Santos.

A fire department official says the float caught fire shortly after the Sangue Jovem samba school ended its parade at dawn on Tuesday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

He says three of the victims were pushing the float. A woman watching the parade was the fourth. The condition of the five injured was not immediately known.

The official says that witnesses reported the float caught fire after striking a power line.

Santos Mayor Paulo Alexandre Barbosa suspended the event with three more schools left to parade.