A frantic search for about 1,400 people believed to be buried alive by a mudslide in Guatamala is continuing, as the death toll from massive floods throughout Central America and Mexico rose to 618.
The towns of Panajab and Tzanchaj, 180 kilometers (110 miles) west of Guatemala City, were hit by the mudslide triggered by rain from Tropical Storm Stan before dawn Wednesday, when soil loosened by days of driving rain began rushing down the slopes of the San Lucas volcano.
The storm also killed 71 people in El Salvador, 28 in Mexico and 11 in Nicaragua, authorities in those countries said. Tens of thousands were left homeless.
Stan slammed ashore as a hurricane in the Mexican state of Veracruz early Tuesday but began pounding northern Central America with rain on October 1, with Guatemala taking the hardest blow.
Many of the victims were indigenous people who lived along the banks of Lake Atitlan, in the west of the country. Tonnes of soil poured down the sides of the mountains surrounding the lake.
Most roads to the isolated area were impassable, and helicopter flights were hampered by driving rain falling for an eighth day onto waterlogged ground.
Guatemalan President Oscar Berger made an impassioned plea to the diplomatic corps in his country's capital late Friday for international assistance, estimating agricultural losses at 135 million dollars.
The United States, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Cuba, Canada and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration pledged help.
Mexico meanwhile launched a vaccination drive amid an outbreak of dengue fever in the storm zone. A quarantine was slapped on the town of Huejutla, in central Hidalgo state, where 180 fell ill.
At least 28 Mexicans were killed by the storm and two million were affected, officials said.
Mexico has set aside 1.6 million dollars for rescue and reconstruction efforts from the recent spike in oil revenues and the country's emergency fund.
Hundreds walked from their village homes in search of potable water and food. Locals helped one another rappel down ravines and riverbeds where washed-out bridges used to be, trying to get into the nearest town.
The 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30, has been one of the deadliest and most active on record. Stan was the 10th Atlantic hurricane this year.
Hurricane Katrina, which slammed the US Gulf of Mexico coast August 29, ravaged New Orleans and coastal areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, killing more than 1,200 people and becoming the deadliest storm to hit the United States since 1928.
PHOTO CAPTION
Residents help in the search for victims at Panabaj, municipality of Santiago-Atitlan, 186 kms west from Guatemala City. (AFP)