Officials say 287 people have been killed and 167 are missing after heavy rains in South Kivu province caused rivers to overflow their banks.
The death toll from floods and landslides in the Democratic Republic of Congo this week has risen to at least 287, the government of South Kivu province in the east of the central African country said.
Another 205 people were seriously injured, while 167 people were missing in floods caused by overflowing rivers following Thursday’s heavy rains.
President Felix Tshisekedi has declared a national day of mourning on Monday, and a ministerial delegation is to travel to the region to coordinate humanitarian aid and disaster management, government spokesman Patrick Muaya said.
The current rainy season, typical of the South Kivu region, is expected to last until the end of May.
The disaster comes two days after the disaster in eastern DR Congo, where floods killed at least 131 people and destroyed thousands of homes in neighboring Rwanda, which lies on the other side of Lake Kivu.
On Saturday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his condolences to the victims of the “catastrophic floods” in both countries.
“This is another example of accelerating climate change and its devastating impact on countries that have done nothing to contribute to global warming,” he said during a visit to Burundi.
Extreme weather events are occurring with increased frequency and intensity due to climate change, experts say.
Last month, about 20 people were killed in a rain-triggered landslide in South Kivu’s neighboring province of North Kivu.
DR Congo, a vast nation the size of continental Western Europe, is one of the world’s poorest countries, wracked by conflict in its east.
