Death toll from Guatemala volcano eruption rises to 70

GUATEMALA CITY — The death toll in Guatemala’s devastating volcano eruption has risen to 70 from 65, the emergency coordinator CONRED and hospital sources said Tuesday.

The last victim to die was an 8-year-old boy with severe burns who was about to be sent to the United States for treatment.

He died at the San Juan de Dios hospital in Guatemala City, which also houses 14 other patients, some of them in critical condition, hospital director Edwin Bravo said.

“One more tragedy has hit us,” Health Minister Carlos Soto tweeted, adding that the authorities nevertheless continued “fighting” against the catastrophe.

Bulldozers were opening the way for rescuers wading through ash, mud and debris.

The 12,346-foot Volcan de Fuego (“volcano of fire” in Spanish) erupted Sunday, about 43 miles southwest of the capital, Guatemala City.

Bodies of entire families were found in their houses after the volcano spewed lava, rock and gas, and covered the surrounding area in ash.

The villages of El Rodeo and San Miguel Los Lotes were largely destroyed and more than 3,200 people had to be evacuated from the area.

Authorities have so far been able to identify 17 of the dead, according to Guatemala’s National Institute of Forensic Science (INACIF).

Some of the victims have already been given burials.

Meanwhile, the energy of the volcano was decreasing, said the head of Guatemala’s National Institute of Seismology, Eddy Sanchez.

“No eruption is imminent in the coming days,” the newspaper Republica quoted him as saying.

The eruption occurred so rapidly that local people did not immediately realize what was happening, witnesses said. “My sisters screamed to me: Nelda, this is getting worse,” said Nelda Mijangos Chang, 45.

Her mother was just making omelets and refused to leave the kitchen immediately, leading to lava reaching her legs, which had to be amputated, Mijangos said.

The government late Sunday declared three days of national mourning and a state of emergency in the departments of Chimaltenango, Sacatepequez and Escuintla.

Around 1.7 million people were affected by the eruption, which also forced the temporary closure of Guatemala City’s La Aurora International Airport.

PRENSA LIBRE/XINHUA Civil Protection members evacuate residents from a house during the eruption of the Volcan de Fuego in Acatenango, Chimaltenango Department, Guatemala, on Sunday.