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Ask in Norway: A landslide has torn part of the road away
Photo: FREDRIK HAGEN / AFP
More than 500 people have been brought to safety after a landslide in southern Norway.
The accident occurred in the village of Ask about 40 kilometers northwest of the capital Oslo.
At least ten people suffered injuries when they left early Wednesday morning, the police said.
Five of them were taken to hospitals, said operations manager Roger Pettersen.
According to him, at least 26 people are missing.
So there are no reports of deaths.
The landslide hit several buildings in Ask.
Residents had dialed the emergency number and described that their whole house was moving, said Pettersen.
The situation is serious.
The missing lived in the affected area, but they could also have been outside at the time of the landslide, said Pettersen.
Helicopter in action
The exact cause of the departure is still unclear.
But it could be related to the local soil type, which is very unstable, it said.
There are hills in the Ask area but no high mountains.
It had rained a lot there recently.
According to media reports, the police were alerted around 4 a.m. and launched a major rescue operation, which also included the Red Cross, civil defense and the army.
Helicopters were used to bring people from the affected areas.
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Rescue workers on site
Photo: Terje Bendiksby / AP
Darkness and bad weather initially made the rescue work difficult.
Geologists also arrived on site.
The Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg expressed her condolences to those affected.
"It hurts to see how the forces of nature have devastated Gjerdrum," said the Prime Minister.
Gjerdrum is the municipality to which Ask belongs.
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wit / dpa / AFP