Guatemala: At least six dead, 12 missing in landslides after heavy rain

Landslides, caused by heavy rains, have killed at least six people and 12 others are still missing Guatemala’s capital city.

According to Guatemala’s National Coordination for Disaster Reduction agency, early on Monday, waters from the Naranjo River rushed through a shantytown in Guatemala City called Dios es Fiel, destroying at least six homes that had been perched under a bridge.

Recovery operations and rescue teams recovered the bodies of six people who died due to the heavy rains that triggered the high waters, which pushed flows of stones, soil and waste through the settlement.

According to the Guatemalan Chamber of Construction, Guatemala has a 59-percent poverty rate. It also has a housing deficit of about 2 million units, which prompts the construction of informal settlements, often in locations prone to natural disasters.