Madeira had a horrible disaster on Saturday and they are still suffering.

Madeira on Tuesday began burying its dead from the Portuguese island's worst natural disaster since the 19th century, even as emergency crews kept searching for 13 people who remained missing. On Tuesday, authorities said they found 19 survivors who had been listed as missing, but Saturday's storm, flooding and landslides killed at least 42 people and left 18 hospitalized. All the fatalities were Portuguese apart from one British tourist.

The island's sketchy public records indicate the storm was the deadliest natural disaster on the island since at least the late 1800s. Bodies are being held in a makeshift morgue at Funchal airport. Families have so far taken 27 bodies from there, broadcaster S.I.C. reported.

Conceicao Estudante, the regional head of tourism and transport, told a televised news conference in Funchal that the 19 found Tuesday had been located in outlying areas cut off by damaged roads or in temporary shelters. Almost 500 people are living in shelters after mud and rock slides crashed down the Atlantic island's steep hillsides, wrecking homes and sweeping vehicles into rivers and the sea.

Rescue teams with sniffer dogs and heavy machinery were engaged in the search for the 13 still missing on the island, which is just over 300 miles (480 kilometers) off the northwest coast of Africa.

Lt. Joao Neves Simoes, a public affairs officer on the Portuguese navy frigate Corte Real which was sent to Funchal, said marines and divers off the ship were searching for bodies in the bay where two rivers flowed into the Atlantic. Marines are also looking in drains, inside collapsed buildings and in partly buried vehicles. "We are essentially searching ... anywhere where there might be bodies," he told The Associated Press by phone.

In the capital's muddy streets, front-loaders and trucks continued to clear away tons of debris. The landslides sent boulders, snapped trees and sludge crashing into coastal communities. Authorities are eager to repair the damage to avoid hurting the tourist business which is the island's economic mainstay.

"Where?", you say. And I wouldn't blame you. Except for it's personal connection to me, I wouldn't know anything about it either.

Madeira is a Portuguese Island off the coast of Africa. It has belonged to Portugal since it was discovered in the 1400's. It is a member of the European Union. From Wikipedia -

When the Portuguese discovered the island of Madeira in 1419, it was completely uninhabited by humans, with no aboriginal population at all. The island was settled by Portuguese people, especially farmers from the Minho region, meaning that Madeirans, as they are called, are ethnic Portuguese, though they have developed their own distinct regional identity and cultural traits.

Their main industries are tourism and wine. (Check the wine-list the next time you are at a nice restaurant. Chances are you'll see wine from Madeira.) Madeira is a popular vacation destination for Europeans.

My personal connection? It's my heritage. My mother's family emigrated from Madeira before she was born. My mom is in touch with some of my 3rd and 4th cousins over there. Cool, huh?

In the meantime, pray for the good hard-working people of Madeira as they recover. Here's the island's official website so you can follow them on twitter or keep up with the recovery and clean-up.