Two days of flooding and landslides in eastern DR Congo have claimed more than 20 lives, officials and police said Saturday.
At least 13 people were killed Friday at an illegal gold mine at Rubaya, in the North Kivu province territory of Masisi.
"The victims were 'diggers' who were in wells and people who were nearby," Jean-Paul Barindikije, secretary of an association of artisanal miners, told AFP.
"Several other people are still buried underground -- the searches are ongoing," he added.
Heavy rain Saturday caused several houses to collapse in central Rubaya, causing five deaths, according to a police tally. One resident said a woman was washed away with her four children.
At Bihambwe, some five kilometres (3 miles) from Rubaya, "three people from the same family were carried away by water from the river," said police superintendant Kambale Muhindo.
Source: AFP
Comment: Update November 21Floodlist
reports:
Rwanda and DRC - Over 40 Killed in Floods and Landslides
Over 40 people have lost their lives after heavy rain caused landslides and flooding in eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and neighbouring Rwanda over the last 2 weeks.
Democratic Republic of Congo
Radio Okapi, the United Nations radio in the Democratic Republic of Congo, reports that 32 people lost their lives in landslides in the mining towns of Rubaya and Bihambwe in the chiefdom of Bahunde, Masisi Territory in North Kivu Province.
The landslides were triggered by heavy rains and flooding overnight 17 to 18 November 2022. Officials and locals are continuing to search the area for several people still thought to be missing and it is feared the death toll may rise further.
Twenty-six of the fatalities occurred in illegal or informal gold mines in Rubaya. Six people died in Bihambwe. Houses have been destroyed and crops damaged in affected areas. Parts of Mwesso in Masisi Territory were also affected.
Heavy rain has affected parts of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo since this first week of November 2022.
On 09 November there were unconfirmed reports of flooding in Butembo in North Kivu Province. On 14 November local media reported landslide and rain damage to a road in Katsiru locality, Rutshuru territory, North Kivu. Around 50 vehicles and passengers were stuck on the road for several days.
On 14 November local media reported heavy rain had caused a wall to collapse in Bukavu, Souh-Kivu Province, killing 3 people.
In a separate report, media said 4 people died and several dozen others were injured after heavy rains caused floods and landslides in Bunyakiri in the territory of Kalehe in South Kivu. Landslides destroyed several houses in the area during this time.
Rwanda
Meanwhile in neighbouring Rwanda, local media reported 3 people died after heavy rain caused floods in the capital city of Kigali on 17 November 2022.
The fatalities occurred in 3 separate incidents in Nyarugenge, Gasabo and Kicukiro districts. The City of Kigali also urged residents to avoid dumping waste in water channels and drainages. Some roads in the city were blocked or closed due to floods.
Comment: Update November 21
Floodlist reports: