Ethiopian landslide death toll at 257 with 15,515 people needing evacuation

July 25 (UPI) -- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on Thursday said Wednesday that the death toll from southern Ethiopian landslides was rising and expected to reach up to 500.

The death toll rose to 257 as of Wednesday, up from 157 reported the day prior, with at least 125 people displaced and sheltering with host communities and more than 15,515 affected people still needing to be evacuated and the government is finalizing an evacuation plan.

"These people are at high risk of further landslides and need to be evacuated to safe zones immediately," UNOCHA's statement said. "Amongst these are at least 1,320 children under 5 years of age and 5,293 pregnant and lactating women. The Federal Government, in collaboration with regional and zonal authorities is finalizing an evacuation plan."

trying to rescue people from the initial catastrophe.trapped thoseHeavy rains in the mountainous Gofa zone triggered the landslides Sunday night, followed by more landslides Monday morning that

Gofa is a remote area and the landslides came after earlier heavy seasonal rains in April and May. That caused floods, displacing over a thousand people as infrastructure was damaged.

The Ethiopian Red Cross is working to bring supplies in and an inter-agency humanitarian assessment team arrived in the affected area.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing with community members "mainly digging through mounds of mud with their bare hands and spades for lack of other options," according to UNOCHA.