Search teams were still digging at the site of deadly mudslides in Gofa, southern Ethiopia Friday as the death toll rose to 257.

Heavy rain triggered deadly slides Sunday and Monday in a remote part of the country.

The UN humanitarian office, known as OCHA, said in an update Thursday that the death toll could rise to as many as 500.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is expected to visit the remote area Friday.

Mudslides there have been triggered by heavy rainfall in recent days.

Abiy said earlier in the week that he was “deeply saddened by this terrible loss.”

Al Jazeera.