Seventeen people have been confirmed dead after a landslide hit the town of Lisal in Mongala Province in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday 17 September 2023. The event is reported to have happened following several days of heavy rain in the area. Landslides are a common problem after severe weather events, as excess pore water pressure can overcome cohesion in soil and sediments, allowing them to flow like liquids. Approximately 90% of all landslides are caused by heavy rainfall. The landslide engulphed several houses at the foot of a mountain; volunteers are still searching the remains of these homes and there are fears the number of dead could rise. The known deceased reportedly include seven men, seven women, and three children under five.
Mongala Province has a monsoon climate, with a long rainy season which lasts from mid-March to mid-November, with two peaks in rainfall; a lesser one in April to June and a larger one in August to October. Such a double Rainy Season is common close to the equator, where the Sun is highest overhead around the equinoxes and lowest on the horizons around the solstices, making the solstices the coolest part of the year and the equinoxes the hottest.
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