Norway (SONNA)-Rescue workers have uncovered a seventh body from a landslide that buried homes in a village near Norway’s capital, police said Sunday, but hopes persist that three people still missing might yet be found alive.
The tragedy occurred early on Wednesday when houses were destroyed and shifted hundreds of metres under a torrent of mud in the village of Ask, 25 kilometres (15 miles) northeast of Oslo
Police spokesman Bjorn Christian Willersrud told journalists they hoped to find more survivors in the landslide zone. “It is still a rescue operation until we decide otherwise,” he said.
During a visit by the royal family on Sunday, King Harald called the disaster “absolutely terrible,” and said it was very difficult to put into words.
Police on Saturday identified the body of the first person found on Friday as 31-year-old Eirik Gronolen.
The identities of the other dead people have not been released.
But police on Friday published a list of the names of all the eight adults, a two-year-old and a 13-year-old child who went missing on Wednesday.
At least 10 people were also injured in the landslide, including one seriously who was transferred to Oslo for treatment.
About 1,000 people have been evacuated of a local population of 5,000, because of fears for the safety of their homes as the land continues to move.
Search and rescue teams have been using sniffer dogs, helicopters and drones in a bid to find survivors.
The search teams were also digging channels in the ground to evacuate casualties.
Experts say the disaster was a “quick clay slide” of approximately 300 by 800 metres.
Quick clay is found in Norway and Sweden and notorious for collapsing after turning to fluid when overstressed.
Prime Minister Erna Solberg described it as one of the biggest landslides the country had ever experienced.
@Aljazera
