The death toll from rain-triggered mudslides in hillside villages in south-eastern Bangladesh rose today to 52, dpa quoted officials as saying. The mudslides buried an army barrack, where five soldiers were killed, and dozens of homes in remote Cox's Bazar and Bandarban hill districts as ceaseless torrential rains continued, an official at the district administration said. The death toll may rise further as rescuers were still in search of missing people amid the inclement weather, said Farid Uddin Ahmed. Responding to the disaster, the government has allocated a package of relief materials and cash for the victims. Rescuers were trying to shift hill residents to safer places. "We are trying to shift the people living in the hills elsewhere. Rescuers was making announcement asking the people to leave risky areas," Gias Uddin Ahmed, chief administrator of the district, told local media. The meteorological department recorded 254 mm of rainfall over a 27-hour period in the area since Monday morning, including 122 millimeters that fell on Tuesday. It forecast continued rain. President Zillur Rahman, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed and opposition leader Khaleda Zia in separate messages expressed shock at the deaths. They asked the administration for quick rescue and rehabilitation of the victims.
