As many as four children and six adults have been burned alive by a security guard after the man stormed a school and set it on fire.

According to Daily Mail UK, the guard threw gasoline over children at the nursery, and over himself then set the fuel on fire at the Innocent Children's People Municipal Education Centre in Janaúba, in Minas Gerias, south east Brazil, police say.

The security guard has been named as 50-year-old Damiao Soares dos Santos.

Harrowing footage from outside the nursery shows desperate parents in tears as emergency crews work at the scene.

The the security guard allegedly responsible for the attack is believed to have died in hospital after the attack this morning.


Some residents have claimed the suspect was a night watchman who had been sacked by the nursery and came back for revenge. But this motive is yet to be confirmed by investigators.

The Frangipani Regional Hospital has reported that 40 people including children and adults are being treated for a range of burns, breathing difficulties and injuries.

Fifteen victims with life threatening injuries have been sent to the capital Belo Horizonte where hospital facilities are more able to cope than than those in the small city where the tragedy occurred.

Lieutenant Colonel John Aparecido Nascimento, commander of Military Police told local news media: 'The situation has caused a great deal of commotion in the city.
'We believe a security guard at the nursery set himself on fire and set fire to children in the kindergarten.'

Police rescue helicopters were dispatched to support the emergency services.