Portuguese rescuers used excavators and their bare hands to sift through mud and debris for victims of violent floods and mudslides that killed at least 42 people on the resort island of Madeira.
Officials said they feared more bodies had been washed away into the ocean after yesterday’s deluge, and flew in divers from the mainland to search for those drowned.
In the mountains above, the death toll was also expected to rise.
Miguel Albuquerque, the mayor of Madeira's capital Funchal, said some areas above the city were particularly badly hit.
Saturday's heavy rainstorm unleashed floods and mudslides on the Atlantic island, sweeping away cars and bridges and burying some houses under tonnes of mud.
It is the worst loss of life in Portugal since 2001, when a bridge over the Douro River collapsed, killing 59 people.
Many roads in Madeira were partially destroyed or blocked with rocks, trees and mud. It took civil protection services more than 24 hours to reach the village of Curral das Freiras, which had been cut off.
Officials said about 120 people were injured and 300 spent the night in temporary shelters. At least 240 lost their homes.
Interior Minister Rui Pereira said the government is 'studying the possibility of declaring a state of emergency'.
Ronaldo promises help for relief efforts
Football star Cristiano Ronaldo, who was born in Madeira, has said he has been left shocked by the disaster and promised help for relief efforts.
'It is a huge catastrophe, a tragedy without precedent,' said the world's most expensive footballer, who was born in a poor district of the capital Funchal.
He said: 'No-one can remain indifferent to a calamity of such huge proportions, least of all me who was born and grew up in Madeira, an island which clearly I think about a lot.
'It is for this reason that I want to express my availability to help the organisations and official entities, in the limit of what is possible, to alleviate and overcome the consequences of this great devastation.'
The island is popular among tourists and many hotels are full of European guests. The British Foreign Office has confirmed that at least one British woman is missing.
Meteorologists said the amount of rainfall yesterday exceeded the monthly average. However, no heavy rainfall is expected on Madeira over the next few days.
