2014 World Cup Stadium Progress: Court Halts Construction, Workers Go On Strike After 2 More Builders Are Killed

Builders working on the World Cup stadium in the Brazilian city of Manaus have gone on strike demanding safer working conditions after a worker fell to his death on Saturday. A total of four people have lost their lives while working on the stadiums set to host matches in the 2014 World Cup scheduled for June and July. A judge ordered that all work on the project stop and it is unclear when workers will resume construction on the stadium. Of the 12 stadiums being constructed half are behind schedule.

Marcleudo de Melo Ferreira was the 22-year-old worker that fell over 100 feet to his death. The man died on Saturday at a Manaus hospital. A spokesman for the builders union told AFP that "the public prosecutor is currently inspecting the site and we shall decide thereafter whether or not work should be resumed." This was the second death at the Arena Amazonia this year as well as the third World Cup Stadium death in a month. Only a few hours after Ferreira was killed, another worker died of a heart attack while working on the outside of the building.

In November, two workers were killed when a crane collapsed as it was lifting a piece of roof weighing 500 tons at the Sao Paulo stadium, which is supposed to host the opening of the tournament on June 12. In April a worker was killed at the Palmeiras Stadium, which is likely to be used for those teams training for games in Sao Paulo. Last year, a worker was killed during the construction of the stadium located near the Brazilian capital of Brasilia.

The Arena Amazonia will host four World Cup matches including England vs. Italy on June 14 and the United States vs. Portugal on June 22. Many teams were hoping to avoid playing in the Manaus stadium because of the city's hot, humid climate and because of the long travel time it will take to reach the arena. Officials in Manaus said to the Associated Press that they are planning to hold a test match in the arena on Jan. 15. The 10,000 workers that put the arena together will sever as spectators.