Landslide death toll might hit 143
- Countries
- Mozambique
- Sources
- Reuters
- Publication date
MAPUTO, Jan 29 (Reuters) - The death toll
from a landslide in central Mozambique last week could reach 143, Minister
of State Administration, Alfredo Gamito, said on Thursday.
First reports of the disaster in the
Milange district near the Malawi border spoke of 13 dead, but by Wednesday
this week 73 bodies had been recovered. Seventy people are still missing
and Gamito said on state radio on Thursday that the missing must now be
considered dead. Gamito, who headed a government team which visited the
region to assess the disaster, said he believed that torrents of mud and
rocks had swept the missing victims into a nearby river, and their bodies
had been carried downstream.
The January 20 landslide occurred when
heavy rains and strong winds sent an avalanche of stones and soil crashing
down from Tumbine mountain onto settlements below, destroying a bridge
and several houses. The landslide happened in the early morning,
when most local residents were asleep. The disaster left about 2,500 people
homeless.