Avalanche Kills 19 Villagers In Iceland

An avalanche roared through a village in northwestern Iceland before dawn Thursday, killing 19 people and sweeping homes off their foundations.

By dark Thursday, 10 people had been rescued and a 1-year-old girl was still missing in the coastal village of Flateyri, 155 miles north of Reykjavik, said civil defense worker Johannes Reykdal.

“This is a tragedy that concerns everyone in Iceland,” civil defense spokesman Hjortur Hjarturson said. “We are such a small country, everyone’s like family.”

He said four of those rescued with the most serious injuries were flown by helicopter to hospitals in Reykjavik and elsewhere. Others who were injured and homeless were taken to a makeshift hospital set up in the Kambur fish-processing plant.

Rescuers assisted by dogs battled winds of 50 mph, near freezing temperatures and six feet of snow to dig for survivors from the avalanche which struck at 4 a.m.

“We have 200 people and a lot of dogs looking for them. They won’t stop until we find them,” Hjarturson said.

The Norwegian state radio network NRK, reporting from Iceland, called it the worst storm in 60 years.

Flateyri is a fishing and farming village with fewer than 400 residents.