Brazilian police yesterday detained the owners of the nightclub where a fire killed 231 people, as well as two band members whose pyrotechnics they say triggered the blaze.

A blaze tore through a crowded nightclub in southern Brazil early yesterday, killing 232 people as the air filled with deadly smoke and panicked party-goers stampeded toward the exits.

A fire swept through a crowded nightclub in southern Brazil early today, killing at least 245 people and leaving at least 200 injured, police and firefighters said.

Authorities in Rio de Janeiro defended the city’s ability to control violence ahead of the World Cup and Olympic Games after drug traffickers shot down a police helicopter, killing two officers.