At least 157 people have been killed in a landslide in Ethiopia’s Kofa, officials said

Rescue teams have so far recovered 157 bodies from two landslides in southern Ethiopia, a local official told the BBC.

The landslide occurred on Sunday evening and Monday morning after heavy rains in the remote mountainous area of ​​Kofa zone.

The local authority said the search for survivors “continues intensively” but “the death toll could rise”.

Footage showed hundreds of people gathered at the scene and others digging through the dirt in search of those trapped underneath.

In the background, a hillside can be seen partially collapsed and a large area of ​​red earth exposed.

The 10 survivors are being treated in hospital, while the dead include both adults and children, Khosa regional chief executive Dagmawi Ayele told the BBC.

Heavy rains triggered the landslide on Sunday, and a second landslide hit police officers, teachers and residents from nearby villages as they frantically continued search and rescue operations on Monday, also buried in mud, Mr Dakmavi said.

“We’re still digging,” he told the BBC.

Kofa is part of the state known as Southern Ethiopia, located 320 km (199 mi) southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), parts of the country have been hit particularly hard by heavy rains and floods in recent months, including southern Ethiopia.

But events like landslides and floods go back further. In May 2016, at least 50 people were killed in floods and landslides following heavy rains in the southern part of the country.

Many factors contribute to flooding, but the warming atmosphere caused by climate change increases extreme rainfall.

The world has already warmed by about 1.2C since the start of the industrial era and temperatures will continue to rise unless governments around the world cut emissions.