At least 12 people, one of which is a five-year-old child, have died in a landslide while sleeping at a camping site on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Danish newspaper, Nordjyske, reports the landslide occurred Friday morning around 3 a.m. (19:00 GMT) in Malaysia’s most rich state Selangor in the mountainous area Genting – known for its scenic nature and hotel resorts.
The area has previously witnessed landslides which have mostly been caused by clearing of forests and land use changes. Although the weather in Malaysia is currently characterised by the Northeast Monsoon, no extreme weather or earthquakes have been recorded in the region Thursday night.
Friday morning, rescue teams are still looking for an additional 25 people who are missing and almost 400 people from various authorities are participating in the search.
According to Reuters, Teh Lynn Xuan, 22, one of her brothers died while another is in hospital.
– I heard a loud sound like thunder, but it was rocks falling (…) We felt the tents becoming unstable and soil was falling from the sky around us (…) My other and I managed to crawl outside and save ourselves, said the 22-year-old camper.
More than 90 people were trapped in the mudslide and 60 of these have been found uninjured. Apart from the nine dead, seven people have been injured.
Last year, 21.000 Malaysians were displaced due to floodings from torrential rain in seven of Malaysia’s 13 states.
Sources: https://nordjyske.dk/nyheder/verden/100-mennesker-frygtes-fanget-i-jordskred-i-malaysia/4053967
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/around-100-people-feared-trapped-malaysia-landslide-fire-department-2022-12-15/
