Heavy rains in South Kivu province caused 287 people to die and 167 others were missing when rivers burst their banks, authorities said.
The death toll from floods and landslides in the Democratic Republic of Congo this week has risen to at least 287, according to the South Kivu provincial government in the east of the Central African country.
Another 205 people were seriously injured and another 167 were missing after heavy rains broke their banks on Thursday, causing flooding.
Government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said President Felix Tshisekedi had declared a day of national mourning on Monday and a group of ministers would travel to the region to coordinate humanitarian aid and disaster management .
The current typical rainy season in South Kivu is expected to last until the end of May.
The devastation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo comes two days after floods killed at least 131 people and destroyed thousands of homes in neighboring Rwanda on the other side of Lake Kivu.
On Saturday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his condolences to victims of “catastrophic flooding” in both countries.
“This is yet another example of accelerating climate change and its disastrous effects on countries that do nothing to combat global warming,” he said during a visit to Burundi.
Experts say extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change.
Last month, about 20 people were killed in a landslide triggered by downpours in neighboring North Kivu province.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, a sprawling country the size of continental Western Europe, is one of the world’s poorest and its east is torn by conflict.
