Body of man hugging dog recovered as Malaysia landslide death toll rises to 26

The commitment by the team drew the attention of the Selangor palace, with the Sultan of Selangor Sharafuddin Idris Shah and his wife Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin praising their efforts.

Meanwhile, Selangor police chief Arjunaidi Mohamed said police had recorded statements from 53 people to assist in investigations, including the operator of the campsite, two workers, survivors and families of victims.

The farm did not have a licence to run a campsite and its operators will be punished if they were found to have broken the law, authorities have said. 

Landslides are common in Malaysia after heavy rains, which are regular at the end of the year.

However, no heavy rains were recorded in the area on the night of the disaster.

In March, four people were killed after a massive landslide triggered by heavy rains buried their homes in a Kuala Lumpur suburb.

In one of the deadliest such incidents, a huge mudslide in 1993 brought on by heavy rain caused a 12-storey residential building outside the capital to collapse, killing 48 people.