Afghan official says 2,000 missing after landslide

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

By AMIR SHAH

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A landslide triggered by heavy rains buried a village Friday in northeastern Afghanistan, leaving as many as 2,000 people missing, a top official said.

Badakshan province Gov. Shah Waliullah Adeeb said more than 2,000 people were missing after a hill collapsed on the village of Hobo Barik. Adeeb said the landslide buried some 300 homes in the area — about a third of all houses there.

The governor said rescue crews were working but didn't have enough equipment, appealing for shovels.

"It's physically impossible right now," Adeeb said. "We don't have enough shovels; we need more machinery."

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20140502/afghanistan-landslide-17f053602d.html

[Comrade Grumpy]

1. That's a lot of people. n/t

[dipsydoodle]

2. Just seen the footage here in the UK on Sky News.

They're using the 2000 figure too.

RIP.

[okaawhatever]

3. I hope they can find some people alive. How tragic. nt

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. Afghanistan landslide 'kills at least 350'

At least 350 people have been killed and many more are missing, the UN says, after a landslide hit the north-east Afghan province of Badakhshan.
...
"The number of deceased has increased to 350 and significant displacement is expected," the UN mission in Afghanistan said in a statement.
...
Local officials say that more than 2,000 people are missing.

About 1,000 houses were affected - 300 of them buried immediately after the side of a mountain gave way.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-27261783

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. More than 2,100 confirmed dead in Afghan landslide

(Reuters) - Afghan officials gave up hope on Saturday of finding any survivors from a landslide in the remote northeast, putting the death toll at more than 2,100, as the aid effort focused on the more than 4,000 people displaced.

Officials expressed concern the unstable hillside above the site of the disaster may cave in again, threatening the thousands of homeless and hundreds of rescue workers who have arrived in Badakhshan province, bordering Tajikistan.

"More than 2,100 people from 300 families are all dead," Naweed Forotan, a spokesman for the Badakhshan provincial governor, told Reuters.
...
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said the focus was on the more than 4,000 people displaced, either directly as a result of Friday's landslide or as a precautionary measure from villages assessed to be at risk.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/03/us-afghanistan-landslide-idUSBREA410MP20140503