distressedLaunch accident in Brazil: At least 21 dead.
One of the four main motors of the VLS-3 rocket accidentally ignited for reasons still unknown, Defense Minster Jose Veigas Filho said.
An explosion followed that decimated the launch pad, a box-like structure that surrounded the white rocket on three sides. ...
"We had just done two days of tests and everything went well - 100 per cent. Everybody is devastated," said air force Colonel Romeo Brasileiro. ...
Presidential spokesman Andre Singer said Brazil was committed to continuing with its space program. ... "Brazil's space program is an important scientific and technological project of our country, today is a day of mourning."
Good for them for pledging to continue. And my sympathy in their mourning. My heart goes out to the brave men and women -- almost all civilian technicians -- who lost their lives.
Incidentally, this seems to have gotten practically zero news coverage in the U.S.