Curitiba stadium work halted over safety breaches

SAO PAULO (Reuters) — Building work at Curitiba's 2014 World Cup stadium has been suspended on the orders of a Brazilian labour tribunal due to numerous and serious safety breaches.
"Countless infractions have been committed, in various stages of the building project," wrote judge Lorena Colnago in her decision, the Parana Regional Labour Tribunal said in a statement.

In the latest blow to tournament preparations, the judge said that there was "a serious risk of workers being buried, run over and of collision, falling from heights and being hit by construction material, among other serious risks."

Work is already behind schedule at the stadium and the judge said a new inspection would have to be carried out before it could re-start.

The Arena da Baixada stadium, which is owned by local club Atletico Paranaense and is due to stage four matches, is one of 12 planned venues for next year's competition.

After a visit from FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke in August, the club agreed to abandon their plans to fit a retractable roof to save time.

Soccer's governing body have said that all stadiums must be ready for delivery in December and no delays would be tolerated.

Preparations for the event have been plagued by delays and cost over-runs.

The Confederations Cup in June, an eight-team tournament which is used as a dry run, was played amid nationwide protests over a number of issues, including the cost of hosting the World Cup.