Guatemala's Fuego volcano eruption: 70 killed, 300 injured and over 200 missing

NewsBharati    06-Jun-2018
Total Views |

Guatemala, June 6: At least 200 people are missing and over 70 were killed since Guatemala's Fuego volcano began erupting over the weekend. Officials today said, search for bodies in mountain villages destroyed by the eruption was progressing slowly due to the nature of the terrain and the way the volcano released large amounts of boiling mud, rock, and ash down the mountain.


 

Disaster relief agency chief Sergio Cabanas told reporters that the prospects of finding any more survivors are poor.

The 3,763-metre volcano erupted early Sunday, spewing out towering plumes of ash and a hail of fiery rock fragments with scalding mud. Authorities said more than 1.7 million people had been affected by the disaster.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life and the significant damage caused by the eruption. He said the UN is ready to assist national rescue and relief efforts.

But it warned there could be new eruptions, and residents in the surrounding areas should be on alert to lahars and mudslides containing volcanic material. Volcanic ash had spread in a 12-mile radius around the volcano and winds could carry the cloud even farther, officials said.

Israel has sent an immediate emergency aid to Guatemala, including medicine & food, following the lethal Fuego volcanic eruption.