Rescue Workers Erect Memorial To Washington Mudslide Victims
A memorial erected by rescue workers near the site of the March 22 mudslide that killed at least 39 people. Martin Kaste/NPR hide caption
Rescue workers still searching for bodies from the March 22 landslide that killed at least 39 people near the town of Oso, Washington, erected a simple, but moving memorial to the victims of the tragedy. Four people are still listed as missing.
NPR's Martin Kaste, who took the photo, says the rescue effort is in a "transition phase" as crews from other states are leaving and being replaced by fresh searchers.
He says some of the departing recovery workers put the memorial up on a massive tree that stood up to the flow even as others were knocked down.
"It's a symbol of the community's resilience," he says.
Kaste says the fresh workers are searching through new areas for the final four missing people.
Meanwhile, member station KUOW's Carolyn Adolph says the community is slowly moving to a "new normal":
"The television trucks are gone now. The new faces in Darrington are no longer reporters, they're FEMA officials come to set up shop after President Obama's federal disaster declaration."