Landslides, heavy rains kill 31 in El Salvador

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador -- Heavy rains triggered landslides that killed at least 31 people in El Salvador on Monday, while rising rivers forced the evacuation of dozens of people there and in neighboring Guatemala.\nBoth countries put their Pacific coasts on alert as a tropical weather front swept over Central America, unleashing downpours and causing principal rivers to overflow.\nMauricio Ferrer, director of El Salvador's national emergency center, said heavy morning rains triggered flooding in 300 communities, claiming 31 lives. He said officials opened 122 shelters across the country to accommodate the more than 8,500 people who fled their homes.\nSalvadoran President Tony Saca declared a nationwide state of emergency.\nDozens of towns in Guatemala were cut off by floods as rescue workers tried to identify the number of people affected. No deaths were reported in Guatemala.\n"We are noticing a critical situation in the south where the rivers have overflowed their banks," said Hugo Hernandez, executive secretary of Guatemala's National Center for Disaster Reduction.\nSalvadoran Interior Minister Rene Figueroa said disaster agencies were working "on responding to the emergency."\nEl Salvador's airport was still open, but landslides cut off major roadways. Schools and universities suspended classes indefinitely.\nThe floods and landslides came two days after the newly active Ilamatepec volcano in El Salvador erupted, sending ashes and hot rocks down its flanks. Two coffee pickers working near the crater were killed.\nThe volcano's activity slowed Monday, but authorities evacuated 7,000 nearby residents and kept people at least two miles from the crater.\nThe volcano, 40 miles west of San Salvador, last erupted in 1904. It became active again in June 2004.