Bodies of 22 soldiers killed in Quang Tri landslide found

The victims from the central provinces of Quang Tri, Quang Binh, Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, and Ha Tinh and part of the Defense Economics Division 337 under the Military Region 4.

They were in three buildings of the barracks in Huong Phung Commune, Huong Hoa District, at around 1 a.m. Sunday when the landslide hit.

Rescue efforts began on Sunday morning and continued until darkness and bad weather halted them, after 13 bodies were found.

At 5 a.m. on Monday nine excavators and hundreds of people resumed the task of searching for the missing personnel.

The last body was found at 2:30 p.m. Monday.

Quang Tri Province authorities said ambulances would be dispatched to bring the victims' bodies to the Dong Ha Town Sports and Competition Center to prepare for memorial services.

The landslide occurred a few days after another killed 13 members of a rescue team, mostly soldiers, that had been on its way to look for workers buried by a third landslide in the neighboring province of Thua Thien Hue.

The central region has been hit for the last two weeks by heavy rains, floods and landslides triggered by unusual weather phenomena.