Heavy rains, mudslide bury Bolivian settlement; 4 killed

Heavy rains caused a mudslide that buried a small Bolivian settlement, killing at least four people, local officials said Sunday. Nine more people are listed as missing.

Jimena Alegre, an official for the Morochota municipality, told The Associated Press by telephone that the mudslide occurred Saturday night in the Quechua community of Chuypakasa and buried the homes of 15 families.

Rescue squads were digging through the site in hopes of finding more survivors. The first responders were from Cochabamba, which is about 220 kilometers east of the capital of La Paz.

Heavy rains have been falling across most of Bolivia since November and an estimated 46,800 families have been affected.

 

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