Several homes in Mbankolo, an impoverished neighbourhood, were reduced to rubble following heavy rains. There are fears that several people are still trapped under the ruins.

“We just put a team that will work all day long to continue finding people,” Housing Minister Celestine Ketcha Courtès told the BBC.

Among those rescued, was a three-month-old baby. Authorities have asked inhabitants to vacate the neighbourhood, which is considered a risk zone, for fear of another landslide there.

Locals told the BBC the incident occurred when rains overflowed from a local reservoir. Some people who lost everything in the incident say they have nowhere else to go.