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Scores Dead in Bangladesh Floods, Landslides


Firefighters rescue people from a house following a landslide in Chittagong, Bangladesh, June 26, 2012.
Firefighters rescue people from a house following a landslide in Chittagong, Bangladesh, June 26, 2012.
Landslides and floods triggered by days of heavy rain have killed at least 91 people and displaced thousands of others in southern Bangladesh.

Rescue efforts were continuing Wednesday in and around the Chittagong port, along with the neighboring districts of Cox's Bazar and Bandarban.

Landslides buried hundreds of homes late Tuesday, killing entire families, including several children.

Other families were being moved from shanties to higher ground. Disaster control officials say at least 50,000 people have been affected by the floods.

Officials say at least 37 people have been killed in Cox's Bazar, 33 in Bandarban and 21 in Chittagong.

Television footage showed rescuers trying to dig through mud to reach those trapped by the landslides.

Most road and rail links between Chittagong and the rest of the country were suspended Tuesday, along with flights in and out of the local airport.

Authorities were distributing food and water to those displaced by the monsoon floods -- a common occurrence in the low-lying, densely-population nation of Bangladesh.
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