Ethiopian officials say Gofa landslide has killed at least 146 people

Rescue teams have so far found the bodies of 146 people killed in two landslides in southern Ethiopia, local officials have told the BBC.

Heavy rainfall followed by landslides in remote mountainous areas of the Gofa region on Sunday night and Monday morning.

Local authorities said the search for survivors was “continuing intensively” but the “death toll may rise.”

The footage showed hundreds of people gathered at the scene while others dug in the mud, searching for those trapped.

In the background, you can see that part of the hillside has collapsed, exposing large areas of red soil.

Dagmawi Ayele, the chief administrator of the Goza region, told the BBC that the dead included adults and children – 90 men and 46 women – while the 10 rescued people were being treated in hospital.

Mr Dagmawi said heavy rains triggered the landslide on Sunday, and as police, teachers and residents of nearby villages frantically continued search and rescue operations on Monday, a second landslide struck and they were also buried under mud.

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

Gorfa is part of the Southern Ethiopian state, about 320 km (199 mi) southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha), southern Ethiopia is among the regions hit by heavy rains and flooding in recent months.

But examples of landslides and floods go back much further. In May 2016, at least 50 deaths Heavy rains hit the southern part of the country, causing flooding and landslides.

Many factors contribute to flooding, but warming atmosphere caused by climate change makes extreme rainfall more likely.

Global temperatures have risen by about 1.2 degrees Celsius since the start of the industrial era and will continue to rise unless governments around the world drastically cut emissions.