234 confirmed dead in El Salvador earthquake
Authorities in El Salvador say 234 people are known to have died in a major earthquake which struck Central America on Saturday.
At least 122 people are believed to have been buried alive in a mudslide triggered by the earthquake in San Salvador's Las Colinas neighbourhood.
Many more are missing after 7.6-magnitude earthquake and the Red Cross says that about 1,200 people are unaccounted for in that disaster.
National Police in El Salvador also said that 2,000 people were injured in the mudslide. Officers added that 16,000 houses were damaged, 4,200 destroyed and that 87 churches and 39 other buildings were damaged. "It was like a wave of dirt that covered us," said Emilio Renderos, 60, a watchman employed in Las Colinas. "It was horrible."
Pope John Paul II has urged the international community to come to the aid of the earthquake's victims.
Mexico has sent an air force plane with aid and promises of help have come from the United States, Spain and Taiwan.
The quake shattered buildings in several cities in El Salvador. Smaller aftershocks were felt in San Salvador late on Saturday but there was no immediate information on their magnitude.
Centred off the country's southern coast, the tremour also rocked Honduras and Guatemala. Buildings swayed as far away as Mexico City.
Salvadoran President Francisco Flores declared a national emergency and appealed for international help to search for survivors.
