Crews begin repairs to a washed-out section of Highway 170 in Rivière-Éternité, Que., Sunday, July 2, 2023. The search for two people swept away by a landslide in Quebec’s Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region is stretching into a third day. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

Search stretches into third day for two people missing after Quebec landslide

Rescue teams looking for unidentified man and woman in their 40s missing in Rivière-Éternité

The search for two people swept away by a landslide this weekend in Quebec’s Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region is continuing today.

Rescue teams resumed looking for a man and woman in their 40s missing in Rivière-Éternité, Que., about 260 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.

The search operation is focused along a 1.8-kilometre stretch of the small, winding Éternité River, on the shore and in the water.

Quebec provincial police say the operation is being slowed by a number of factors including debris from the landslide and extreme heat.

More than 50 people were forced to leave their homes after a storm on Saturday dumped 130 millimetres of rain over two hours on the area, washing away roads and triggering flooding.

Police have not identified the two missing people but have said they were not from the community.

A third person was also caught in the landslide but was saved and taken to hospital.

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QuebecSearch and Rescue