Death toll in mudslide reaches 39

Associated Press

EVERETT, Wash.

The death toll from the massive mudslide that hit the Washington town of Oso last month has risen to 39, officials said Wednesday.

The Snohomish County medical examiner’s office said it was identifying the three bodies most recently discovered and notifying families.

The sheriff’s office said it has removed one name from the missing list, which previously stood at seven.

Officials didn’t say whether one of the most recently recovered bodies led to the change in the missing list.

One body was found Monday, and two were found Tuesday in the southeast corner of the debris field where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has erected a berm in the past week, said Koshare Eagle, a spokeswoman for the incident management team.