ALAUSI/QUITO, Ecuador, March 27 (Reuters) – At least seven people were killed, 23 injured and nearly 50 missing in landslides triggered by heavy rains in Ecuador’s Andean region, the country’s hazard agency said in a revised statement on Twitter on Monday. .
Earlier, the agency said 16 people died as a result of a landslide in the town of Alaci in Ecuador’s Chimborazo province. It did not explain the reasons for the revision, but it said 32 people had been rescued after heavy mudslides swept through parts of Alazi city on Sunday night.
Its report on Twitter raised the number of missing to 46, up from seven in its previous report. In total, 500 people and 163 homes were affected, the agency said.
“We are witnessing a terrible tragedy,” Transport Minister Dario Herrera told Reuters in Alazi. “The first thing to look out for is to get people out of their homes.”
Rescue workers searched the wreckage for survivors with the help of dogs. In some areas, most houses were completely buried by soil, a Reuters witness said.
A stadium was completely buried after the landslide, while another used for sports and music events collapsed.
Heavy rains have destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure across Ecuador. Earlier this month, President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency in 14 provinces badly hit by severe weather and a strong earthquake.
Reporting by Tito Correa in Alassie and Alexandra Valencia in Quito; Written by Valentine Hilaire and Oliver Griffin, Editing by Angus MacSwan and David Gregorio
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