RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - State prosecutors in Brazil have identified cracks in a tailings dam owned by iron ore mining company Vale SA and have asked the firm to hire an independent auditor to look in to the matter, a television station reported on Friday night.

The report on Brazil's TV program "Jornal da Band" said it obtained the documents regarding the B-5 dam from prosecutors in the state of Minas Gerais through a freedom of information request. The dam is located near the town of Brumadinho, where a Vale tailings dam burst in January, killing hundreds. As a result, the mining-dependent region is on high alert for any possible deficiencies in the hundreds of tailings dams that spot the area.