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São Vicente's Mindelo port became a vital refuelling stop for steamships carrying goods across the Atlantic Ocean or to Africa - and an important global communications hub with the 1875 arrival of a submarine cable station.

The fishermen towed his boat back to Mindelo, on the island of São Vicente in Cape Verde.

Tourists from Europe usually head to Sal and Boa Vista, where resorts partition white-sand beaches; adventurous visitors climb the active volcano on Fogo or celebrate Carnival on São Vicente.

The deaths occurred in the cities of Guaruja, Santos and Sao Vicente in Sao Paulo state, according to a statement from its civil defense office.

It feels as if we are on the far edge of Europe: its most south-westerly point lies a short way north – at Cabo de São Vicente, whose lighthouse I can just about see.