OSLO – Norwegian rescuers deployed drones and dogs to negotiate unstable clay soil in search of ten people still missing on Thursday after a landslide in southern Norway swept away more than a dozen buildings the previous day.
Another ten people were injured, one critically, after the landslide in the residential area in the Gjerdrum municipality, about 30 km (19 miles) north of the capital, Oslo.
Conditions remained challenging, with the clay soil still too unstable to run emergency services workers and the temperature which was -1 Celsius (30F) at 06:00 GMT.
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Authorities from the crater continued to break away, authorities said people should not approach the area. About 1,000 people have been evacuated so far.
“We are still searching for survivors,” police chief Roger Pettersen told reporters, adding that children and adults were missing.
During the night, police used drones with heat-seeking equipment to search for survivors in the rubble. Helicopters tried to drop the army and police with search and rescue dogs on some structures, which are apparently stable enough to stand up.
A Dalmatian dog was rescued during the night.
On Thursday, Pettersen asked local residents not to send up fireworks to celebrate New Year’s Eve, so that they do not interfere with the helicopters and drones.
Separately, questions were asked as to why construction is allowed in the area.
TV2 said that a geological survey for municipal authorities in 2005 had a high risk of landslides. But new homes were built three years after the report was published.
In a rare public statement, King Norway told Harald that the landslide had left a deep impression.
“My thoughts are with all those who have been affected, injured or lost their homes, and those who now live in fear and uncertainty over the full extent of the catastrophe,” the 83-year-old king said in a statement issued by the Royal Palace. .