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Five killed in machete attack at Brazil nursery

05 May 2021 06:31 (UTC +04:00)

Five people have died after an 18-year-old man launched a machete attack at a nursery school in southern Brazil, police say, APA reports citing BBC.

The victims include three children all reported to be under two years old and two staff members.

The attacker then turned the weapon on himself and is in critical condition in hospital, a police statement said.

It is not clear what was behind the attack in the small town of Saudades, in Santa Catarina state.

Several dozen children were in the building at the time of the incident and staff tried to hide them, officials said. A fourth child is said to have suffered minor injuries.

Military police say they received several calls at 10:35 local time (13:35 GMT) from neighbours who reported that a man armed with a machete had entered the nursery and was attacking staff and children.

Police say the man - who has not been named - first attacked a teacher who was at the entrance to the nursery. He reportedly followed her into one of the rooms, where he also turned on the children.

The nursery is located in the centre of Saudades, a town of about 9,000 people, and according to Globo news it cares for children under the age of 3.