Congo flood deaths double to over 400
STORY: The death toll from the floods that hit two villages in the Democratic Republic of Congo last week has now soared into the hundreds, according to the local governor, making it one of the worst natural disasters to hit the country in recent history.
And with hundreds of people still missing, the numbers may climb much higher.
This is was South Kivu province on Friday, a day after the floods and landslides hit. On Monday civil society sources told Reuters that bodies are being piled into mass graves.
The U.N. says about 3,000 people have also lost their homes.
Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of rains in Africa, according to the U.N., and South Kivu was already prone to floods and landslides.
Last week's disaster in the DRC also coincided with floods and landslides in neighboring Rwanda, where over a hundred were killed and 5,000 homes destroyed.
