Eruption of Congo's Mount Nyiragongo Leaves At Least 15 Dead, Thousands Displaced

Lava flowed into villages in eastern Congo after dark with no notice, killing at least 15 people and damaging more than 500 houses.

Eruption in Congo

Late Saturday, lava from the eruption reached the airport in Goma, the capital of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and the government urged people to evacuate.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund, the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo on Saturday night forced around 5,000 people to evacuate the city of Goma over the nearby Rwandan border. At the same time, another 25,000 found shelter in Sake to the northwest.

Missing Children

More than 170 children were still missing Sunday, according to UNICEF authorities, who said they were putting together transit centers to assist unaccompanied children in the aftermath of the tragedy.

Goma was largely spared the devastation that the volcano wreaked the last time it erupted in 2002. Hundreds of people died, and over 100,000 people were displaced. On the other hand, Sunday was defined by sorrow and confusion in outlying villages closer to the volcano.

Burning a Village

When the lava flow approached her village, Aline Bichikwebo and her baby fled, but both her mother and father were killed. Community members put the death toll in Bugamba at ten, though provincial officials said it was too early to tell how many people died.

Bichikwebo claims she attempted to save her father but could not carry him to safety until the lava engulfed the family's house.

She clutched her baby and said, "I'm calling for support because everything we had is gone." "We don't even have a pot," says the narrator. We've been orphans of nothing."

Since too many houses had caught fire when the lava hit, the air was dense with smoke.

"People are always scared and hungry," said Alumba Sutoye, a local. "They have no idea where they'll sleep for the night."

Authorities said at least five more people died in a truck crash while attempting to flee Goma, although the extent of the tragedy in some of the hardest-hit villages has yet to be known.

Unforeseen

According to residents, there was no warning until the dark sky turned a bright red, sending people fleeing in all directions. According to Rwanda's national broadcaster, one woman went into labor and gave birth while fleeing the eruption.

On Sunday, smoke billowed from smoldering lava heaps near the city of Buhene.

Young Bahala Shamavu said, "We have seen the disappearance of almost an entire city." "All of the houses in the Buhene neighborhood were destroyed by fire, which is why we are appealing to all regional and national officials, as well as all partners and citizens of good faith around the world, to come to the rescue of this population."

Witnesses reported that lava had consumed one of the highways linking Goma and Beni. However, as in 2002, where lava poured onto the runways, the airport seemed spared.

Goma, Congo

Goma serves as a geographic center for several humanitarian organizations as well as the United Nations peacekeeping mission. Although several United Nations peacekeepers and relief workers call Goma home, most of eastern Congo is threatened by a slew of armed groups fighting for dominance of the region's natural wealth.

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