At least 13 people were killed Friday at an illegal gold mine at Rubaya, in the North Kivu province territory of Masisi.

"The victims were 'diggers' who were in wells and people who were nearby," Jean-Paul Barindikije, secretary of an association of artisanal miners, told AFP.

"Several other people are still buried underground -- the searches are ongoing," he added.

Heavy rain Saturday caused several houses to collapse in central Rubaya, causing five deaths, according to a police tally. One resident said a woman was washed away with her four children.

At Bihambwe, some five kilometres (3 miles) from Rubaya, "three people from the same family were carried away by water from the river," said police superintendant Kambale Muhindo.