At least 19 people, including children, were murdered when a landslide struck a campsite in Selangor, Malaysia.
Families were resting in their tents at a farm stay in Batang Kali township when a landslide occurred around 3 a.m. Friday (1900 GMT Thursday).
Friday was spent by hundreds of rescuers crawling through mud to discover survivors.
At least 30 youngsters and 51 adults were enrolled for an overnight stay, according to the farm’s managers.
According to local media, Malaysian authorities said that fourteen individuals are still missing and that approximately 700 officials are working on the search and rescue operation.
According to the Malaysian fire department, at least four children were among the deceased.
According to a report in the New Straits Times, about twenty elementary school teachers and their families were there.
Minister of Local Government Development Nga Kor Ming reported that the campground was functioning unlawfully.
Mr. Nga also stated that he has ordered the immediate closure of all “high-risk” camping sites in the nation, including those located along rivers, waterfalls, and slopes, for a period of seven days.
It is unknown what caused the landslide, which occurred in a forested hilly area adjacent to the road at Batang Kali, near the Genting Highlands.
Locals reported some light rain, but no severe precipitation or earthquakes in the preceding hours. In Malaysia, monsoon season is presently underway.
The landslide originated on a slope that was more than 30 meters (100 feet) higher than the campsite and rolled over an acre of land.
Photographs uploaded online by Malaysian rescue authorities depicted personnel wearing helmets clambering up difficult terrain, past toppled trees, and other debris.
Teh Lynn Xuan, a camper, reported that she and her mother had survived, although her brother had perished and another sibling had been hospitalized with injuries.
She told the Malaysian daily Berita Harian, “We felt the tents getting unstable and soil falling around us.
“My mother and I were able to escape and save ourselves”
She stated that she had camped with a large group of over 40 people.
Leong Jim Meng, another survivor, stated that he heard an explosion before the ground began to shift.
This had awakened him and his family, who had been temporarily trapped in their tents by rubble before escaping.
“It was too dark to see what was going clearly,” he stated.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was scheduled to be at the site later on Friday after several other government leaders had visited.
On his Facebook page, he expressed sympathy for the victims and prayed for more survivors.
