MEDELLIN, Colombia, May 20 (UPI) -- The death toll in Colombia's landslide Monday has nearly surpassed 80, media reports said Wednesday.
Heavy rains triggered Monday's slide in northwest Colombia, which sent mud and debris into many homes there, President Juan Manuel Santos said Wednesday. The slide occurred in the town of Salgar, about 60 miles away from Medellin.
Rescuers continue to search for survivors, but so far at least 78 people have died and many others are injured. Authorities fear that the hope of finding more survivors is dwindling by the day, though, BBC News reported Wednesday.
CNN reported Wednesday that more than 80 have so far been killed.
"People were just screaming everywhere, and I ran to help, but the river was impassable, and all the bridges were covered," survivor Leon Dario Restrepo told Colombia's RCN network, CNN reported.
Santos declared a state of emergency and has promised the government will provide food and new housing to those displaced by the landslide.
An 11-month-old infant has been rescued, the Guardian reported, while the child's mother and 11 relatives were killed. The little boy was found buried face-down in the mud, rescuers said, not far from where he was sleeping when the slide hit.
A doctor said the child was somewhat protected by his padded crib as the slide carried it away.
The slide started very early Monday after the region had been saturated by heavy rains, which caused a local river to breach its banks.
"We're doing a sweep and going house to house to verify precisely the number," said Cesar Uruena of the Red Cross.
