6 more bodies discovered in Washington mudslide; death toll rises to 14

March 2014 – WASHINGTON – Six more bodies were found Monday in the massive Washington mudslide, bringing the death toll to 14, officials said. The announcement confirming the deaths came from the Snohomish County Twitter account. A news conference was scheduled for early Monday evening. Despite the efforts of rescuers, no survivors have been found since the Saturday mudslide just east of Oso. The square-mile debris field smashed through a rural cluster of homes about an hour’s drive north of Seattle. Officials said early Monday that they had preliminary reports of 108 missing people, though they cautioned that the number was “soft” and would probably change. At least seven people remained hospitalized Monday, including a 22-week-old boy in critical condition. The infant, Duke Suddarth, whose condition officials said was improving, was hospitalized along with his mother, Amanda Skorjanc, 25, who was in satisfactory condition.

Fearing more moving earth at the site of Saturday’s disaster, search-and-rescue workers were pulled back Monday afternoon from searching for the dead and missing, officials said. “There are concerns about additional slides in the same area affected Saturday,” Snohomish County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Shari Ireton told reporters. “Ground crews have pulled back, and geologists are on the ground.” There were still more than 100 responders in the field Monday afternoon, Ireton said, using search dogs, hovercraft, air support and sonar devices to look for survivors and victims in the square mile of deep debris. –LA Times