People gather at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer
DOUALA, Cameroon (Reuters) - A landslide caused by heavy rains in western Cameroon killed at least 42 people overnight, state media reported on Tuesday.
Rescue teams spent the day scouring the rubble of destroyed houses in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands. Among the bodies recovered were those of 26 children, Cameroon Radio Television (CRTV) reported.
The search will resume on Wednesday for additional bodies believed to remain under the rubble, CRTV reported.
Rescue workers search for casualties at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer
"Around 10 p.m. I heard a noise," said Albert Kenge, who survived the landslide. "I saw a big cloud of dust and when it dissipated, I saw that the mountain had collapsed."
Heavy rains have continued beyond the end of Central Africa's rainy season, causing severe flooding which has displaced nearly 30,000 people in Cameroon's neighbor, the Central African Republic.
The United Nations children's agency UNICEF said last week that exceptionally heavy rain in South Sudan had destroyed health centers and roads, making access to food and water more difficult for nearly 1 million people.
Rescue workers search for casualties at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer
(Reporting Josiane Kouagheu, writing by Anna Pujol-Mazzini, editing by Ed Osmond and Christian Schmollinger)
Rescue workers search for casualties at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer Rescue workers search for casualties at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer People gather at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer A view shows damage at the site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer A woman carries belongings as she evacuates a site of a landslide caused by heavy rains in the town of Bafoussam in the western highlands, Cameroon October 30, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer
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