In the worst incident, a hillside collapsed on a crowd of volunteers as they tried to dig out a bus buried by a previous mudslide.

At least 20 bodies have been recovered, but the search for around 40 people still missing has been suspended for fear of further landslides. President Alvaro Colom has called the disaster a national tragedy.

He visited the scene where rescuers were digging frantically to find people buried in thick mud at kilometre 171 of the Inter-American highway north of Guatemala City.

On September 4, President Colom declared a state of emergency and asked congress to approve emergency funds for rebuilding.

He said he would also propose a special tax to help pay for reconstruction, saying there were not enough funds available to deal with the disaster.