Rio de Janeiro will redouble police patrols for its spectacular New Year's celebrations after gangs attacked buses and police posts yesterday in a wave of violence that killed at least 18 people.
Seven people were burned to death on a bus and nearly two dozen were wounded, said Rio state public security secretary Roberto Precioso, who blamed drug gangs and their jailed kingpins for 12 attacks across the oceanside city.
Police killed seven suspected attackers and arrested three. Two police officers were killed in the violence, which started after midnight. Two buses were torched in the afternoon despite strong policing.
The attacks came as Rio prepared for its massive New Year's Eve beach party, which draws huge crowds of tourists. More than 2 million people are expected to flock to Ipanema and Copacabana beaches where performers including US hip-hop band Black Eyed Peas will take part in a globally broadcast show.
Officials said 14,234 officers will patrol streets, bus stations, and subway stops on New Year's eve - a 20 per cent increase from last year. They will use 92 additional vehicles to patrol potential hot spots. Police will erect 32 surveillance towers on famed Copacabana beach.
Firefighters found seven charred bodies inside a bus that was torched on the busy Avenida Brasil thoroughfare. Assailants sprayed a police post with bullets in the beachside neighborhood of Botafogo, killing a street vendor.
Municipal tourism secretary Rubem Medina told Reuters the attacks would hurt Rio's image. After its famed Carnival in February, the city will host the Pan-American Games next July.
"It's such a shame that we are working so hard to show the positive sides of our city and this act damages it all," Mr Medina said. "It is lamentable, sad," he said. He expected 550,000 tourists for the New Year's bash.