A landslide crushed at least eight people and seriously injured nine others near an artisanal mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday, a local official told Reuters on Saturday.

The wounded are in a critical condition and receiving treatment at a local health facility, the administrator of Fizi territory in South Kivu Province, Aime Kawaya Mutipula, said by phone.

Landslides are relatively common in the hilly slopes of eastern Congo where heavy rains can saturate and loosen soil. But they are more likely to occur if soil has been disturbed by mining, tree-felling or construction.

In December, intense rains in Congo's capital Kinshasa caused flooding and landslides that killed around 170 people.