Death tolls from torrential rains and deadly flooding continue to rise in Colombia and Venezuela.
Disaster officials say at least 25 people have been killed in heavy rains and mudslides in north-central Colombia, which also left some 30,000 people homeless.
Officials say the hardest-hit areas are in and around Bucaramanga, near the border with Venezuela. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe expressed dismay at the magnitude of the disaster.
Venezuelan officials report storms that struck southern Merida state Friday have pushed the number of weather-related fatalities nationwide to more than 40. Earlier in the week, some 14,000 people lost their homes in central Venezuela as a result of flooding.
The Venezuelan government has extended a state of emergency issued earlier to include Merida and neighboring states.
Some information provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
