Kalkidan Yibeltal in Addis Ababa & Christy Cooney in London
BBC News
Rescue teams have so far retrieved the bodies of 157 people killed in two landslides in southern Ethiopia, a local official has told the BBC.
The landslides occurred on Sunday evening and Monday morning, after heavy rains in a remote mountainous area of the Gofa zone.
The local authority said the search for survivors was “continuing vigorously” but that the “death toll could yet increase”.
Footage showed hundreds of people gathered at the scene and others digging in the dirt in search of people trapped underneath.
In the background, a hillside can be seen partially collapsed and a large patch of red earth has been exposed.
The chief administrator of Goza zone, Dagmawi Ayele, told the BBC that the dead included both adults and children, while 10 people rescued alive were receiving treatment in hospital.
Heavy rains caused a landslide on Sunday, and as police officers, teachers and residents from nearby villages frantically continued with search-and-rescue operations on Monday, a second landslide occurred, burying them too under the mud, Mr Dagmawi said.
“We are still digging,” he told the BBC.
Gofa is part of the state known as Southern Ethiopia, located around 320km (199 miles) south-west of the capital, Addis Ababa.
Southern Ethiopia is among the areas of the country that have been hit by particularly heavy rain and flooding in recent months, according to the UN’s Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha).
But instances of landslides and floods go back further. In May 2016, at least 50 people were killed in floods and landslides following heavy rain across the south of the country.
Many factors contribute to flooding, but a warming atmosphere caused by climate change makes extreme rainfall more likely.
The world has already warmed by about 1.2C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.
You may also be interested in:
- Floods wreak havoc in East Africa
- Kenya orders flood evacuations as it warns dams could spill
- The climate change phenomenon linking floods and bushfires
Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.
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Death toll from Ethiopian landslides rises to 157, official says Times LIVE 7h
157 killed in Ethiopia landslides Daily Post 09:46
At least 146 dead in Ethiopian landslides Channel 4 News – YouTube 09:13
Ethiopia landslides kill at least 157 people Voice of America 08:49
Hunt for survivors after around 150 die in Ethiopia landslide RTL Today 08:36
Death toll in southern Ethiopia mudslides rises to 157 Sri Lanka Daily Mirror 08:32
At least 157 dead in southern Ethiopia mudslides as search operations continue Fox News 08:04
Ethiopia: Death toll from landslides rises to over 150 | REUTERS Reuters – YouTube 07:58
At least ۱۴۶ people killed in Ethiopia landslides Iranian Labour News Agency 07:45
At least 157 now dead in Ethiopia landslides, after rescuers engulfed News24 07:36
Landslides kill 146 in Ethiopia The New Times 07:13
‘Children Hugging Corpses’: 157 Dead In Mudslides Triggered By Heavy Rains In Ethiopia Outlook India 07:06
At least 146 people killed in Ethiopia landslides: report Mehr News Agency 06:37
Almost 160 people killed by mudslides after heavy rains hit Ethiopia CBS News 06:21
Ethiopia mudslide death toll surpasses 150 Deutsche Welle 06:09
Death toll in southern Ethiopia mudslides rises to at least 157 as search continues NPR 06:05
Over 100 people killed in twin Ethiopia landslides Al Jazeera 06:02
At least 146 killed following landslide in Ethiopia RTE 05:54
Death toll in southern Ethiopia mudslides rises to at least 157 AfricaNews 05:51
Death toll in southern Ethiopia mudslides rises to at least 157 as search operations continue The Times Colonist 05:41
Death toll from landslide in southern Ethiopia rises to 55 Mehr News Agency 05:35
At least 140, including children, killed in Ethiopia mudslides, officials say Associated Press – YouTube 05:27
At least 146 killed in mudslides in southern Ethiopia Yahoo! UK & Ireland 05:17
Death toll from Ethiopia landslide climbs to 146 SHINE 05:09
At least 146 killed in Ethiopia mudslides euronews 05:06
Death Toll From Ethiopia Landslide Rises To 146 Channels Television 04:59
Landslides in Ethiopia kill 157 Armenpress 04:54
Ethiopia landslide kills at least 146 as search operations continue South China Morning Post 04:53
Death toll in Ethiopia mudslides rises to 146 as search operations continue Irish Examiner 04:52
Children amongst 146 killed in Ethiopia mudslide The Independent 04:29
Death toll from Ethiopia landslide rises to 146: local official Business Recorder, Pakistan 04:24
Death toll in southern Ethiopia mudslides rises to at least 146 as search operations continue Toronto Star 04:21
Death toll from landslide in southern Ethiopia climbs to 146, local official says Anadolu Agency 04:04
Death toll from Ethiopian landslides rises to 157, official says Times LIVE 03:28
Children among dozens killed in mudslides in a remote area of southern Ethiopia Associated Press 03:04