Afghanistan landslide

This item appears on page 14 of the July 2014 issue.

On May 2, heavy rains caused two massive landslides in the Badakhshan province of northern Afghanistan, killing more than 2,500 people and almost completely burying the town of Abi Barik. The first landslide hit in the morning, leading to a rescue effort by about 600 people from a neighboring town who became victims of the second landslide.

Rescue and recovery efforts were ended on May 4 after soft mud and inaccessibility hampered operations. Only about 350 bodies had been recovered.