RIO DE JANERIO — A relaxing day overlooking Rio de Janeiro’s Ipanema Beach turned into anything but that after a gunfight between police and suspected gang members erupted.
About 200 people were on the trail leading up to Morro Dois Irmãos when officers tried to arrest suspected members of the Comando Vermelho gang who had been hiding in Vidigal on April 20, TV Globo and the BBC reported.
Officers and the alleged gang members exchanged gunfire, blocking the trail’s main route and leaving the tourists stuck.
The tourists had planned to watch the sunrise from atop the mountain when it all unfolded.
“We had waited for sunrise and, suddenly, the guides asked us to sit down, and we started hearing gunshots,” Matilda Oliveiro told TV Globo.
Rita Oliveiro said the guides had been told in advance. Guides told TV Globo they coordinated with police.
But the tourists themselves didn’t know before the gunfight happened.
“We were caught by surprise. We were already at the top when we started hearing gunshots, and the guides were already telling us what was happening,” Danielly Nobre told O Dia.
A police helicopter hovered over the group and told them to stay calm, Nobre said.
The group of tourists was able to come back down the mountain after about 30 minutes.
“In the end, everything worked out. Everyone went down in a single file, everyone helping, and we managed to finish the trail, see the sunrise, and experience that adrenaline rush,” Nobre told O Dia.