Washington mudslide: Officials say weather is 'working against them'
Digital Reporter
Friday, March 28, 2014, 1:12 PM -
The system that's forecast to bring up to 70 mm of rain to the B.C. coast is on track to dump 50 mm south of the border.
That has sparked concerns for officials in Oso, Washington, where rescue teams have been scrambling to clean up after a deadly mudslide that hit last week.
"The rain and the wind and the weather is basically working against us," said Travis Hots of the Snohomish County Fire District Chief at a press conference Friday.
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"[There is] a one hundred percent chance of rain, we're looking at wind at, like, 20 miles an hour in places, on the site. That's going to further complicate things for our responders that are up there."
On Thursday, officials reduced the number of people missing or unaccounted for to 90, about half of what it was the day before.
So far, 26 people have been confirmed dead, but that number is expected to climb higher in the days to come.
An estimated 180 people lived within the path of the mudslide.
With files from Reuters
Search and rescue teams continue to work on March 27, 2014 in Oso, Washington. A massive mudslide killed at least twenty-five and left many missing. (Photo by Ted S. Warren-Pool/Getty Images)