Heavy rains kill at least 7 in Rio de Janeiro state, 4-year-old rescued after 16 hours under mud

PETROPOLIS, Brazil (AP) — Heavy rains in Rio de Janeiro state have killed at least seven people while a 4-year-old girl was rescued after more than 16 hours under mud. The girl was pulled out alive Saturday in the city of Petropolis north of Rio. Rescue teams had to stop their work Friday night because of risks of new landslides in the region. The girl’s father died as a house was knocked to the ground. Rescue teams said that she survived because he protected her with his body. Three more people died in the same place. Mayors in the state and Gov. Claudio Castro had alarmed residents of potential problems for the weekend since Thursday.