Nearly fifty killed by landslide on eastern volcano's slopes

REUTERS - A landslide on the slopes of a volcano in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has killed 46 people and washed away more than 200 homes, the U.N.  peacekeeping mission said on Wednesday.

The landslide, on the slopes of Nyrangongo volcano at Kibumba, in north Kivu province where the army is trying to oust Rwandan Hutu rebels, was triggered when rivers overflowed at the volcanic peak at the weekend following heavy rains.

“The record so far is 46 people feared dead and more than 200 houses washed away,” said Madnodje Mounoubai, spokesman for the U.N. mission MONUC, which has recovered 14 bodies and is assisting in the rescue effort.

The volcano, which overlooks the provincial capital Goma, is one of two active volcanoes that have regularly erupted and spewed lava in recent years, killing scores in 2002.