Landslides: 125 die, Rescue efforts continue

At least 125 have died after heavy rain triggered landslides in three hill districts of southeastern Bangladesh.

Four soldiers were among the victims whose bodies were recovered in rescue operations, said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief's control room in Dhaka on Tuesday night.

The highest casualty is in Rangamati where 88 people have died, said GM Abdul Quader, a deputy secretary at the ministry.

Thirty people died in Chittagong. Of them, 22 were buried under mud and the rest were crushed under trees. Six died in Bandarban, according to an official count.

But seven were dead in remote Bandarban, according to local officials who spoke to bornomalanews.com.

In an earlier press conference, Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya said around 4,000 people had been moved to 18 shelters set up by the government.

A soldier was still missing in the landslide which killed four personnel and injured ten more near the army's Manikchhari camp in Rangamati.

Rains continued in the southeastern districts influenced by a land depression since Sunday.

The roads connecting Chittagong to Rangamati, Bandarban and Cox’s Bazar snapped at night as water rushed downhill.

Fire service, civil defence and police personnel are currently conducting rescue operations in the area.