16 Victims Confirmed Dead In Malaysia

16 victims have been confirmed dead and the search now is focused on the remaining 17 in Malaysia.

This information was given by Nor Hisham Mohammad, director of the operations division at the fire and rescue department.

According to Nga Kor Ming, the local government development minister, 61 people so far have been found safe after the predawn landslide near the town of Batang Kali, just outside the capital Kuala Lumpur and near a mountain casino resort.

Veronica Loi, who was camping at the site overnight and survived the landslide revealed  that her family was sleeping when they heard a sudden, loud sound.

Hundreds of government personnel including police and rescuers were seen at the gates leading to the campsite compound while an excavator was seen entering the area from the main road.

The government has imposed strict rules with regards to hillside development, but landslides have continued to occur after due to seasons of bad weather.

In March, four people were killed after a massive landslide triggered by heavy rains buried their homes in a Kuala Lumpur suburb.

In one of the deadliest such incidents, a huge mudslide in 1993 brought on by heavy rain caused a 12-storey residential building outside the capital to collapse, killing 48 people.