Fears rose on Tuesday that the death toll from devastating mudslides in Guatemala could reach 2 000, as rescuers suspended their search for hundreds of people buried for six days under solidifying mud near a volcano west of Guatemala City. More than 650 are confirmed dead, but 1 400 still are listed as missing.

The official death toll from massive floods ravaging Central America and Mexico has surged to 770 as hundreds more were feared dead in Guatemala on Monday, following last week’s mudslide that swallowed two small towns in the west of the country. Only 71 bodies have been recovered in the mudslide-hit area so far.

Tropical Storm Stan left a trail of devastation across Central America and Mexico, killing at least 225 people and forcing 225 000 others from their homes after unleashing five days of relentless downpours, authorities said on Thursday. The death toll in Guatemala surged late on Thursday to 134 after a mudslide killed 55 farmers.