国际英语新闻：Death toll reaches 30 in Colombian landslide

BELLO, Colombia, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- Rescuers have found 30 of the 150 people who are believed to be trapped in the mud and rocks left by a landslide in Bello, Antioquia, in the northeast of Colombia.

"we have found the bodies of 12 young people, 11 men and seven women," John Freddy Rendon, regional director of he Administrative Department for Prevention and Attention to Disasters (Dapard) on Tuesday told Xinhua.

The rescue operation ended at 8 a.m. local time (1300 GMT), following 40 hours of work by 700 people, including rescuers and volunteers, searching for more than 100 residents of the disappeared La Gabriela neighborhood.

"There are about 700 people working in teams of 100 and 200, in the area of the landslide," said Rendon, together with 16 search and rescue dogs.

At least 50,000 cubic meters of earth fell on this town on Sunday, due to the intense rains during the last few days. On Monday, the Colombian government declared the region in a state of public calamity.

"The climate is very nice here, it is very sunny, and fortunately it has not rained since the tragedy and this facilitates the work," Rendon said.

Authorities fear that the number of victims could reach 124, including the eight people who were rescued alive, and the 30 bodies that were recovered in the last two days. The hope of finding more survivors, however, decreases as time passes.

Oscar Andres Perez, mayor of the municipality of Bello, said that "we will continue (working) until we find the last of the disappeared bodies."

Perez said in an interview with local radio station La FM that he will meet with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who is scheduled to visit the region to evaluate the situation.

The funeral for the victims will take place in the Catholic Church of Bello on Tuesday afternoon.