DRC: Scores buried by landslide, thousands still at risk

Photo: IRIN A landslide buried a village on the slopes of Mt. Nyiragongo (file photo)

NAIROBI, 20 May 2010 (IRIN) - Sixteen people have been confirmed dead and 27 missing after a landslide buried a village on a mountain slope in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), say aid workers in the North Kivu capital of Goma.



The 16 May landslide on Kibiriga village on the eastern slopes of Nyiragongo volcano was caused by an overflowing river. At least 1,500 people were affected, most of whom sought shelter in a nearby village where they are still at risk because heavy rains have continued to pound the area.



"The mudflow destroyed one part of a village, sending people fleeing to a nearby village," Narciso Rosa-Berlanga, acting head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Goma, told IRIN on 20 May. "These people sleep outside at night out of fear, and are living at risk. If the rains continue, they will be affected."



The displacement pushed the number of people at risk from landslides around Nyiragongo to at least 6,500. "The aid agencies are responding by providing food, non-food items and temporary shelter," Rosa-Berlanga added. "The landslide occurred when these people were in a recovery phase, since the [security] situation has improved, so it is a setback for them."



North Kivu is one of the regions of DRC that have grappled with insecurity for a long time because of the presence of various armed groups. The situation has, however, stabilized to some extent in recent months.



The UN Mission in Congo (MONUC) said its peacekeepers had recovered 16 bodies. "The search for the missing is continuing," Madnodje Mounoubai, MONUC spokesperson, said on 19 May.



Nyiragongo, which overlooks Goma, is one of two active volcanoes in North Kivu. The other, Nyamulagira, erupted on 2 January, spewing lava 10km away and threatening the town of Sake and the Sake-Goma road through which most of Goma's food passes.



Nyiragongo erupted in January 2002, sending hot lava flowing into Goma, 17km away. Scores of people died, while 120,000 were left homeless and 18 percent of the town's surface was covered in lava. Some 300,000 people had to be evacuated while others fled across the Rwandan border to Gisenyi town.



On 1 March, at least 300 people, including 100 children, died when landslides triggered by heavy rains buried three villages in neighbouring Uganda's eastern Bududa region. At least 2,000 people were displaced and entire fields of crops ruined.



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Source: IRIN • humanitarian news and analysis from Africa