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                                                                                         WORLD NEWS Monday 4 January 2021
            3rd body found after landslide in Norway; 7 still missing



            By JARI TANNER                                                                                                      to  hold  the  weight  of  res-
            Associated Press                                                                                                    cue  equipment,  including
            HELSINKI  (AP)  —  Rescue                                                                                           a  heavy  vehicle  from  the
            teams  searching  for  survi-                                                                                       Norwegian military.
            vors four days after a land-                                                                                        Over  1,000  people  have
            slide  carried  away  homes                                                                                         been  evacuated,  and  of-
            in  a  Norwegian  village                                                                                           ficials said up to 1,500 peo-
            found no signs of life Satur-                                                                                       ple  may  be  moved  from
            day amid the ruined build-                                                                                          the area amid fears of fur-
            ings and debris.                                                                                                    ther landslides.
            Three bodies have been re-                                                                                          The exact cause of the ac-
            covered but searchers are                                                                                           cident is not yet known but
            still  looking  for  seven  more                                                                                    the  Gjerdrum  municipal-
            people  believed  to  be                                                                                            ity, where Ask is located, is
            missing. The landslide in the                                                                                       known  for  having  a  lot  of
            village of Ask is the worst in                                                                                      quick clay, a material that
            modern  Norwegian  history                                                                                          can  change  from  solid  to
            and has shocked citizens in                                                                                         liquid form. Experts said the
            the Nordic nation.                                                                                                  substance of the clay com-
            Search  teams  patrolled                                                                                            bined  with  excessive  pre-
            with  dogs  as  helicopters                                                                                         cipitation  and  the  damp
            and  drones  with  heat-de-                                                                                         weather typical for Norway
            tecting cameras flew amid                                                                                           at  this  time  of  year  may
            harsh   winter   conditions   Rescue crews work in the area at Ask in Gjerdrum, Saturday Jan. 2, 2021, after a massive landslide   have  contributed  to  the
            over the ravaged hillside in   smashed into a residential area near the Norwegian capital on Wednesday.             landslide.
            Ask, a village of 5,000 peo-                                                                       Associated Press  Norwegian  authorities  in
            ple 25 kilometers (16 miles)  news conference.            in  his  New  Year’s  speech  Photos and videos showed  2005 warned people not to
            northeast of Oslo.           By late Saturday, a second  that  the  royal  family  had  buildings  hanging  on  the  construct  residential  build-
            Norwegian police pledged  and  third  body  had  been  been deeply moved by the  edge  of  the  ravine,  which  ings in the area, but houses
            not  to  scale  down  the  found after a first one was  tragedy.                       grew  to  be  700  meters  were eventually built there
            search even though a res-    discovered on Friday. Only  Norwegian  police  have  (2,300  feet)  long  and  300  later in the decade.
            cue  team  from  neighbor-   a Dalmatian dog has been  published  the  names  and  meters  (1,000  feet)  wide.  Spokeswoman Toril Hofsha-
            ing  Sweden  has  already  rescued alive from the ruins  birth years of the 10 people  At least nine buildings with  gen  from  the  Norwegian
            returned home.               so far.                      initially reported missing, in-  over  30  apartments  were  Water  Resources  and  En-
            Local police chief Ida Mel-  King Harald V, Queen Sonja  cluding  a  2-year-old  child.  destroyed.                 ergy Directorate called the
            bo Oeystese said it may still  and Crown Prince Haakon  Officials  haven’t  yet  iden-  The  rescue  operation  is  landslide  unique  in  its  de-
            be possible to find survivors  plan  to  visit  the  disaster  tified  the  three  recovered  being  hampered  by  the  struction.
            in air pockets inside the de-  area  on  Sunday  to  pay  bodies.                      limited  number  of  daylight  “Not  since  1893  has  there
            stroyed buildings.           their respects to the victims  The   landslide     early  hours in Norway at this time  been a quick clay landslide
            “Medically, you can survive  and to meet with residents  Wednesday  cut  across  a  of year and fears of further  of  this  dimension  in  Nor-
            for several days if you have  and  rescue  workers.  The  road  through  Ask,  leaving  erosion. The ground is frag-  way,”  Hofshagen  told  the
            air,” she told reporters at a  83-year-old  monarch  said  a  deep,  crater-like  ravine.  ile  at  the  site  and  unable  media on Saturday.q
            Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan resume talks over disputed dam




            CAIRO (AP) — Egypt, Ethio-   at  the  final  stage  of  the  called  by  South  Africa,  ar-
            pia  and  Sudan  resumed  project.                        guing  that  the  current  ap-
            their  years-long  negotia-  The  foreign  and  irrigation  proach  to  reaching  a  tri-
            tions Sunday over the con-   ministers  of  the  three  Nile  partite  agreement  on  the
            troversial  dam  Ethiopia  is  Valley countries met online  filling and operation of Ethi-
            building  on  the  Blue  Nile,  Sunday, said Ahmed Hafez,  opia’s  dam  had  not  yield-
            officials said.              the  spokesman  of  Egypt’s  ed results.
            The  resumption  came  six  Foreign Ministry.             Sudanese Irrigation Minister
            weeks after Khartoum boy-    Sudan  also  confirmed  the  Yasser  Abbas  said  at  the
            cotted  talks  in  November,  meeting.                    time that the AU should do
            urging  the  African  Union  Ethiopia’s  Water  and  En-  more  to  “facilitate  the  ne-
            to  play  a  greater  role  in  ergy Minister Seleshi Bekele  gotiation  and  bridge  the
            reaching  a  deal  over  the  said  earlier  the  meeting  gap  between  the  three
            disputed  Grand  Ethiopia  was called by South Africa,  parties.”
            Renaissance Dam.             the current head of the Af-  Africa’s  largest  hydroelec-
            The negotiations have cen-   rican  Union,  and  that  U.S.  tric  dam  has  caused  se-  BANDA In this June 28, 2013 file photo, construction work takes
            tered on the filling and op-  observers  and  AU  experts  vere tensions between the   place, at the site of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam near
            eration  of  the  giant  dam.  would attend.              three nations.               Assosa, Ethiopia.
            Key questions remain about  Sudan’s    Irrigation  Minis-  Egypt  has  called  it  an  ex-                                      Associated Press
            how  much  water  Ethiopia  try  said  the  three  counties  istential  threat  and  worries  and  its  more  than  100  mil-  pull  millions  of  people  out
            will release downstream if a  would  hold  separate  talks  that it will reduce the coun-  lion  people.  About  85%  of  of  poverty.  Sudan,  in  the
            multi-year  drought  occurs  with  the  AU  experts  and  try’s share of Nile waters.  the  river’s  flow  originates  middle,  worries  about  the
            and  how  the  three  coun-  observers  before  a  three-  The Arab’s world most pop-  from Ethiopia.               effects  on  its  own  dams,
            tries  will  resolve  any  future  party meeting on Jan. 10.  ulous  country  relies  almost  Ethiopia  says  the  $4.6  bil-  although  it  stands  to  ben-
            disputes.  Ethiopia  has  re-  In  November,  Sudan  did  entirely on the Nile to sup-  lion dam will be an engine  efit  from  access  to  cheap
            jected  binding  arbitration  not attend a round of talks  ply  water  for  agriculture  of  development  that  will  electricity.q
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