The mounting toll from a mudslide that buried a Guatemalan community on October 1 has risen to 253 confirmed dead, with several hundred more unaccounted for.
Search and rescue efforts will continue through the weekend, but on Monday officials will meet to decide how much longer to continue the operation, deputy Public Health Minister Israel Lemus said on Friday.
Eight days after the disaster, 386 people remain unaccounted for in the town of Santa Catarina Pinula, 15 kilometres east of Guatemala City.
The death toll rose by 16 over Thursday's count as more remains were recovered, officials said.
More than 100 homes were levelled in a section of the town known as Cambray II.
AFP
