ARLINGTON, Washington — Following the deadly mudslide that ripped through the Oso, Wash. community Saturday morning, the Oso Fire Department has been an unofficial headquarters of sorts for volunteer efforts.

On Wednesday afternoon alone, clothing donations came in and out, homemade cookies and soups were passed around the fire house, and dozens of anxious search and rescue volunteers donning fluorescent vests and muddy jeans sat in clusters awaiting their marching orders.

The only problem with this beehive of activity — there were too many bees.

Nearby residents are gathering by the dozens to help search for the 170-plus people still missing, but authorities aren’t able to accommodate all prospective volunteers. Many of them are spending hours, if not days, waiting for a chance to lend a hand.

Gordon Storoe, a lifelong Arlington resident, tried volunteering on Tuesday, but was told there wasn’t any room. After arriving at 7 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning, he was still awaiting deployment at 3:30 p.m. that afternoon. Another group of volunteers, three 2013 Arlington High School graduates, were still sitting in the fire house at 3:30 p.m. after having arrived at 6:45 a.m. that morning.

Image: Mashable, Kurt Wagner

Search and rescue officials have been sending volunteers to the slide zone in shifts that can last as long as six hours, with no more than 50 going out at any one time. That number was limited to 30 volunteers on Tuesday, so it has been growing. In total, more than 200 search and rescue responders have been out in the field the last two days, according to Travis Hots, fire chief for Snohomish County Fire Protection District 21.

When volunteers do get the nod, they are greeted with a seemingly endless amount of trees, wire, mud and metal. Rescuers and volunteers are using everything in their power — including shovels, miniature bulldozers, chainsaws and search dogs — to aid in the search.

As of Tuesday night, that search has yielded 16 confirmed deaths with an additional eight bodies that have not yet been recovered, according to Hots. That number is expected to rise again on Wednesday.

“There are finds going on continually. They are finding people now,” Steve Mason, a Snohomish County fire-battalion chief leading the west-side search operation, told The Seattle Times Wednesday afternoon. “People are under logs, mixed in. It’s a slow process.”

Search and rescue teams have been joined by multiple Blackhawk helicopters to aid in an aerial search and the removal of bodies, according to The Seattle Times. Ambulances are also on scene, roughly 25 miles east of Arlington, in case any volunteers or rescue officials need immediate medical treatment.

Continual rain has added extra difficulty to the search process, turning necessary dirt access roads into slick mud, and causing visibility issues for search and rescue teams, Hots said. Rescuers were trying to add gravel to the roads on Tuesday, but more rain fell on Wednesday, and is expected to continue through the weekend, according to weather reports.

A media briefing is scheduled for 6 p.m. PT Wednesday; officials will update the public on the number of bodies recovered and those still missing.

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