At least 131 people were killed in mudslides that smashed into a village outside Guatemala City, officials said Sunday, three days after the disaster struck the Central American nation.
"Unfortunately, a new count shows that there are 131 confirmed dead and recovered," and still about 300 people missing and unaccounted for, said volunteer fire brigade spokesman Julio Sanchez.
He told reporters that several young children, including newborn babies, were among the dead in Santa Catarina Pinula.
On Thursday night, following heavy rain, waterlogged earth and debris tore through the village of El Cambray II, in the municipality of Santa Catarina Pinula, destroying or damaging at least 125 homes.
Relatives of the missing checked in at a makeshift morgue set up next to the buried homes.
Municipal authorities had urged the community, about 15 kilometers (10 miles) east of the capital Guatemala City, to relocate several times, most recently in November of last year.
But many families have refused, saying that they have nowhere to go.
"We can't live here any more," Carlos Hernandez, an electrician who survived the landslide, lamented as he stepped between rescuers with his few remaining belongings on his shoulder.
Late Sunday, rescue workers had to suspend their work when rain resumed, making things too dangerous to continue before Monday.
The bad news came as, with every passing hour, hopes for finding survivors fade a bit further.
The best hope for rescuing victims in landslides, cave-ins and earthquakes is within 72 hours of the tragedy. That critical window lapses at 0400 GMT Monday.
'There was nothing'
The destruction was sudden and decisive.
"I went on an errand for my mother and when I returned there was nothing," said Carlos Ac, 17. He was still waiting for word about his missing mother and seven siblings.
In gray denim trousers and a black coat -- now the only clothes he has -- Ac said his family had come from the city of Quetzaltenango, approximately 200 kilometers to the west of the capital, to sell tortillas.
Alex Lopez, 44, called his ex-wife and daughters as soon as he heard of the landslide. "It rang. But there was no answer," he told AFP.
Desperate families have reported receiving text messages from people they believed to still be trapped.
Officials said the impact of the heavy rain was exacerbated by a nearby river, and that municipal authorities had recommended the community relocate last year.
Eight people had already died in previous weather-related events tied to Guatemala's rainy season, which lasts from May to November, according to government data.
Last year's rainy season was tied to 29 deaths and damage to more than 9,000 homes.
More than 53 percent Guatemala's population of 16 million lives in poverty. And the scars from a 36-year civil war that ended in 1996 are still fresh.
Besides grinding poverty and corruption, Guatemalans endure horrific crime rates and powerful, vicious street gangs blamed for giving their country one of the world's highest murder rates.
AFP
Mon Oct 05 2015
On Thursday night, following heavy rain, waterlogged earth and debris tore through the village of El Cambray II, in the municipality of Santa Catarina Pinula, destroying or damaging at least 125 homes.
Mohd Azizulhasni tekad dikalungkan pingat emas di Paris
Azizulhasni tekad untuk 'dikalungkan' pingat emas pertama Malaysia di Sukan Olimpik Paris 2024 pada penampilan terakhirnya di temasya itu.
USM cipta rekod hasilkan kaligrafi Cina 2.68km
Penuntut USM cipta rekod dalam MBOR apabila menghasilkan penulisan kaligrafi Cina sepanjang 2.68 kilometer.
MITRA sudah belanja RM40 juta daripada peruntukan RM100 juta tahun ini
Sebanyak RM40 juta daripada peruntukan RM100 juta yang disalurkan kerajaan tahun ini kepada MITRA telah dimanfaatkan untuk pelbagai program.
Laporan Pasaran Labuan IBFC 2023 tunjukkan pemulihan kukuh, pertumbuhan luar biasa
Laporan Labuan IBFC 2023 mendedahkan pertumbuhan luar biasa wilayah itu yang menyumbang RM1.2 bilion kepada hasil fiskal Malaysia dan melepasi paras RM1 bilion buat pertama kalinya.
Freedom Flotilla to Gaza: Guinea-Bissau akur kepada Israel, tidak beri kebenaran guna bendera bagi misi pelayaran
Kerajaan Republik Guinea-Bissau dilaporkan tunduk dan akur kepada gesaan Israel untuk tidak membenarkan misi pelayaran Break The Siege: Freedom Flotilla to Gaza menggunakan bendera mereka.
Penyakit berkaitan haba dikhuatiri meningkat di Gaza
Penularan penyakit berkaitan haba panas menjadi kebimbangan terbaharu di Gaza selepas suhu luar jangka melampau melanda wilayah itu setiap hari. Ia sudah semestinya diburukkan lagi dengan kekurangan air bersih dan ketiadaan sistem pembuangan sisa pepejal yang sepatutnya wujud di sesebuah kawasan didiami manusia.
Ilhan Omar melawat peserta tunjuk perasaan
Wakil Dewan Perwakilan Amerika Syarikat (AS) Ilhan Omar mengadakan lawatan di kampus penyokong Pro Palestin di Universiti Columbia New York pada Khamis.
Dua lelaki didakwa jadi 'tali barut' kepada China
Dua lelaki yang mana salah seorangnya pernah bertugas di Parlimen United Kingdom (UK) enjalani proses perbicaraan di mahkamah London pada Jumaat selepas didakwa menjadi tali barut menyalurkan maklumat sulit kerajaan kepada negara tembok besar itu.
Polis serbu pejabat 'Save the Children' di Guatemala
Polis Guatemala melakukan serbuan mengejut ke atas pejabat-pejabat Pertubuhan Save the Children di pelbagai lokasi di negara itu. Ia bagi mencari bukti dakwaan pertubuhan yang memperjuangkan kebajikan kanak-kanak itu, terlibat dalam jenayah penderaan terhadap golongan itu.
LIMA '25 dianjurkan pada 20-24 Mei tahun depan
Pameran Maritim dan Aeroangkasa Antarabangsa Langkawi 2025 (LlMA ‘25) akan dianjurkan pada 20 hingga 24 Mei tahun depan bertemakan Innovate Today, Thrive Tomorrow.