El Salvadoran President Francisco Flores yesterday tried to calm nervous Salvadorans, assuring them that Saturday's powerful earthquake that left at least 400 dead would not trigger volcanoes or other new disasters.
Frequent aftershocks in the Central American nation continued to frustrate rescue workers and sent Salvadorans scurrying from their homes and offices. More than 500 aftershocks shook the area in the wake of Saturday's 7.6 magnitude quake.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The president told citizens that there would not be a repeat of Saturday's earthquake and tried to quash rumors that the tremor would unleash a volcanic activity or a tsunami, referring to powerful tidal waves that can follow a strong quake.
"Another event of such great impact is not going to occur," said Flores. "We urge people to keep their doors open [to be able to escape falling debris] and to keep calm."
Most of the victims of Saturday's quake have so far been pulled from the San Salvador suburb of Santa Tecla, where a massive mudslide engulfed as many as 500 middle-class homes.
In Santa Tecla, hundreds of emergency workers and volunteers struggled to shovel dirt from around collapsed homes in a sea of mud, tree limbs and rubble.
Rescue teams on Sunday managed to dig up one survivor from the rubble. Sergio Moreno, 22, was rescued from the destruction at Santa Tecla after being trapped for more than 30 hours.
But hopes were fading fast of finding many more people alive under the rubble of of the quake, which killed at least 403 people, injured 779 and left 1,200 missing, according to El Salvador's National Emergency Committee.
One such isolated village was Comasagua, only 28km east of the capital city but cut off after landslides blocked or swept away the roads leading to the coffee-growing community, that was home to 80 people.
"Nobody has food or water. Children do not have milk, nobody has eaten since Saturday. ... We need help please," said Cecilia Pena, one of the survivors.
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