http://www.timesofearth.com/Worldnews/?NT=0&nid=18053 LISBON, Portugal - Rescue workers are hunting for missing people after torrential rains caused flooding and mudslides on the Portuguese island of Madeira.
Around 43 people are believed to have been killed, officials said.
Francisco Ramos, the regional government social affairs secretary, said on Sunday that the toll was likely to rise as more emergency teams arrive from the mainland.
"We are going to continue to search for bodies, we are waiting for the teams which are due to arrive ... in order to continue working on the ground," he said .
There are fears that more bodies will be found in the mud that tore down the Atlantic island's roads, sweeping away people and vehicles, on Saturday.
Portugal has sent medical teams, rescue workers, divers and relief supplies to the island, about 1,000km southwest of Lisbon, the capital.
Alberto Joao Jardim, the leader of the regional government in Madeira, about 1,000km southwest of Lisbon, said another 100 people were in hospital emergency wards.
He said the government was making temporary shelters available for hundreds of people left homeless in the flooding.
Describing the situation on the island to Reuters news agency over phone, Ana Basilio, a reporter for Lusa News Agency, said: "When it all happened, we couldnt see anything, we couldnt walk.
"People in the market had to be evacuated while shopping. People with cars couldn't move in the roads. Communications were all off, so people couldn't reach their families.
"We are a mountain island, and water just came down the river carrying everything in its way. There were cars, fridges and cupboards and even people. And we couldn't do anything.
"A fireman who tried to [rescue] a lady was carried by it too.
"This morning [Saturday] we will see the destruction because at night it was really hard [to assess].
"There are a lot of people missing. We don't know if they are alive or dead. We will know this morning when the lights come on."
Jose Socrates, the Portuguese prime minister, has expressed "profound shock" at the disaster and promised support for those affected.
"I am absolutely saddened and shocked with the images, with the consequences of this calamity," he said, as he prepared to travel to Madeira to assess the damage.
Television footage showed powerful streams of water and mud flooding the streets of Funchal, dragging and overturning cars and destroying trees.
It was not immediately clear whether any tourists were among the victims.
Rachel Goncalves, a journalist in Funchal, described the scene as "chaotic".
"We have no memory of something like this ... with so many people dead," she told AFP news agency.
"There are dramatic stories of a man who saw his family swept away by the waters in Funchal. It's a very dramatic situation and this is only one such story, there are more," she said.
Portuguese authorities have promised to organise aid for the autonomous region, and the country's government has said it is considering asking the European Union for help with the crisis.
Jardim, Madeira's regional leader, spoke to Jose Manuel Barroso, the Portuguese European Commission president on Saturday, to appeal for emergency aid from the European bloc.
Officials said they are also discussing whether to declare a state of emergency on the island.
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pologeo17 2 years ago
They didn't mess up on the naming of the city. When they add the name of the city, in this case Lison, it just refers to where the news is being broadcast/written. In this case, it is stating that it is being reported in Lisbon regarding the Madeira.
MrGondomil 2 years ago
People often confuse geography with nationality :)
WolYou 2 years ago
Lisbon? This is in Madeira, it's an island at about the same latitude as morocco, lisbon is the capital in Iberian Peninsula! It's thousands of km's away -.-
BrianOConnorPT 2 years ago