According to Mayor Santiago Guarderas, a water basin on a hill overflowed on Monday as a result of the heavy rain. This caused a mile-long mudslide that cut through a sports field where volleyball players were training and the audience was watching.
The current also washed up cars and damaged houses. Ecuadorian emergency service SNGRE tweeted on Tuesday that 16 people are still missing. 46 people were also injured, six of whom are in critical condition.
According to Guarderas, 75 liters of precipitation fell per square meter. “This is a record amount that we have not seen since 2003,” said the mayor.
