At least six people were killed and three others were still missing after a landslide early Wednesday in western Georgia, according to a new report from authorities.
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“The number of victims has increased to six,” the Georgian Emergency Service lamented, adding that “the search for the three missing people is underway.”
An earlier report from authorities reported four dead and five missing.
The landslide occurred in the village of Nergueti, about 170 km from the capital Tbilisi.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili expressed her “deep sadness at the tragic loss of life in this natural disaster.”
“I express my condolences to the families of the victims and hope that the missing people will be found soon,” she said.
Heavy rains and floods are not uncommon in Georgia, and the steep slopes of this mountainous country increase the risk of such disasters.
In August 2023, 26 people died in a landslide in a small resort town in a mountainous region of northwest Georgia.