KAMPALA, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least over 200 people have been displaced following a weekend landslide that hit three villages in the mountainous eastern Ugandan district of Bududa, local authorities and police said on Monday.
Polly Namaye, deputy police spokesperson told Xinhua by telephone that no human deaths have been reported so far.
She said a rescue team had been dispatched to the affected villages to establish the extent of the damage.
"We have sent a team on the ground to establish the damage and whether there were human causalities and deaths," said Namaye.
John Nambeshe, the area Member of Parliament said the landslide hit the three villages of Marobo, Shikhuyu and Nabutsasi affecting over 200 people.
He said the Sunday incident followed torrential rains.
"The residents in affected areas are sitting on a time bomb. There are so many cracks. We advise them to leave and relocate to safer places. But many have stubbornly refused to do so," he said.
Some of the displaced persons have sought refuge with relatives in safer places and nearby trading centers, according to local media.
According to government figures, at least 35,000 people around the slopes of Mountain Elgon are at risk of landslides as heavy rains start to hit the region.
In March 2010, several landslides occurred in Bududa, killing at least over 300 people and leaving thousands of others homeless.
