Toll in Japan mudslides hits 49

The toll in deadly landslides in the Japanese city of Hiroshima rose to 49 Saturday, while 41 people remained missing.

About 2,800 rescuers continued their efforts in searching for survivors three days after downpours triggered the mountainside disaster, Xinhua reported citing the Japanese media.

The bodies of three missing people were found while a man who had been in critical condition died Saturday, the report said, adding that with one of the missing people confirmed safe, the number of those missing was reduced to 41 from 43.

Hiroshima was hit by torrential rain in the early hours of Wednesday with more than 100 mm of rain per hour recorded, triggering more than 50 mudslides in the Asaminami and Asakita wards in the city.

The mudslides buried and washed away houses and apartments in the two wards, trapping many who had remained in their homes.

Experts were quoted by the report as saying that the survival rate for people trapped without food or water in a disaster drops significantly after the first 72 hours, which passed early Saturday.