UN humanitarian agency says more than 15,000 people need to be evacuated after deadly landslides hit on Monday. Deaths caused by landslides in Ethiopia have risen to 257, but the final death toll is expected to be 500, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The UN agency released the figures on Thursday after the landslides in the mountainous Gofa zone in southern Ethiopia, the first triggered by heavy rains on Monday, the second engulfing those who had gathered to rescue people. The revised death toll is an increase of 28 on figures provided by Ethiopia’s National Disaster Risk Management Commission on Tuesday. The soil in southern Ethiopia has been saturated by seasonal rains, making the area more prone to landslides.

Source: Ethiopian News July 25, 2024 11:05 UTC