Malaysia: Landslide kills campers and dozens missing

• At a farm site off a road, more than 90 people were encamped.
• A farm stay area in Batang Kali town was hit by the landslide.
• The cause of the landslide is unknown.

Authorities in Malaysia’s Selangor state report that a landslide struck a camping site, killing at least eight people and leaving dozens more missing.

North of the nation’s capital Kuala Lumpur, just outside the steep Genting Highlands, the avalanche happened at 3 a.m. on Friday (19 a.m. GMT on Thursday). Authorities are frantically trying to save anyone who might be trapped in the muck.

At a farm site off a road, more than 90 people were encamped.

The National Disaster Management Agency of Malaysia reported that 53 individuals had been saved so far. But many more are still unaccounted for.

Nik Nazmi bin Nik Ahmad, Malaysia’s minister of environment and natural resources, posted on Twitter, “I pray that the missing victims can be located securely soon.”

He mentioned that rescue crews had been at it since early in the morning. He is scheduled to go to the catastrophe scene today along with other government representatives.

A farm stay area in Batang Kali town, 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of the city, was hit by the landslide.

About an acre of the surrounding area was damaged, and it started up a hill about 30 metres (100 feet) higher than the campsite.

Online images from Malaysia’s rescue organisations showed groups of helmeted workers scrambling over difficult terrain and around fallen trees and other debris.

The cause of the landslide is unknown; according to the local media, there were no recent earthquakes or periods of severe rain.

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