In a continent lashed by deadly flash floods and still reeling from a 7.8-magnitude earthquake in Ecuador, the collapse of an elevated bicycle path in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday might seem a smallish sort of tragedy. But Brazilians know better.

Late last Thursday, authorities were still puzzling over the cause of the accident, in which a large wave crashed against a cliff, ripped away a 49-meter section of the bike lane, and tossed it into the sea, killing at least two people. Rescue crews on Friday were still searching for three others.

The wider disaster was hard to miss. The 4-km track, which winds around a steep coastal cliff, was built as part of a suite of sweeping urban improvements ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games.