GUATEMALA CITY, June 6 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the eruption of the Fuego volcano in Guatemala has risen to 99 as more bodies were found Wednesday, according to Guatemala's National Forensic Sciences Institute (INACIF).
The remains of 99 people have been sent to morgues, while just 28 have been identified so far, the INACIF said in a report.
"We already have data with names and locations where there are missing persons and that number is 192," said Sergio Cabanas, head of Guatemala's disaster management agency.
Explosions boomed from the 3,763-meter volcano Wednesday, unleashing a new flow of dangerous volcanic material and forcing the rescuers to suspend the search for victims. Experts also warned that heavy rains in the area could provoke avalanches due to the large flows of volcanic mud.
Fuego volcano exploded around noon on Sunday, affecting more than 1.7 million people. A state of disaster has been declared for the southern departments of Escuintla, Sacatepequez and Chimaltenango, which suffered the most in the disaster.
"The conditions are critical in the areas near Fuego volcano," said Eddy Sanchez, director of the National Institute of Seismology, Volcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology, adding that Sunday's eruption is the most violent explosion of Fuego volcano since 1974.
According to volcanologists, eruption records of Fuego Volcano, one of the country's most active volcanoes, date back to 1542. At its fiercest, the volcano could spray ash all the way to Guatemala's southern neighbors of El Salvador and Honduras.