The children were at school and had gone out for recess when the landslide happened. 17 students were pulled out alive, as well as the teacher and the mother of a child.
Three children died from a landslide that swept away a rural community school in the northwest Colombiathe authorities announced.
“We have very sad news: three children have lost their lives” in this landslide, the mayor of the village of Andes, Carlos Osorio, told local media on Thursday night.
An initial report had spoken of eight children who were missing. The six children who were pulled from the ruins are being treated in a “steady” state to a nearby hospital, the mayor said.
“17 students were pulled out alive (…) the teacher and the mother of a minor as well”he added.
The children were at recess, in the presence of the teacher and a mother, during the tragedy.
In statements to local media, Eliana Rincones, the school’s only teacher, had previously said that 22 children were in the school at the time of the landslide.
“We were all at recess when suddenly we heard something very loud, we all turned (to look), within seconds we were all running (…) we didn’t even know where we were running, we were doing nothing but running”explained.
The landslide followed heavy rains in much of Colombia due to the La Niña weather phenomenon. According to forecasters, the heavy rains are expected to continue until September.
RES-EMP
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