Road cleared to make search for mudslide victims easier

Crews have cleared a path through the muck and devastation wrought by Washington’s deadly mudslide, making the painstaking search for victims easier. The makeshift road completed over the weekend links one side of the 300-acre debris field to the other. Crews have also been working to clear mud and debris from the highway, leaving piles of gooey muck, splintered wood and housing insulation on the sides of the road. The number of confirmed dead in the 22 March slide increased from 18 to 21, said Jason Biermann, program manager at the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management. Another four bodies were found Sunday, but they won’t be added to the official count until the medical examiner receives them.