The landslide that buried a district of the southern Ecuadorian city of Alausi a month ago has killed at least 49 people, while another 39 are still missing, according to the latest toll released by the authorities on Wednesday.

The National Secretariat for Risk Management (SNGR) stated that 43 residents of the district were injured and another 581 were affected by the landslide, which destroyed dozens of houses on the night of March 26-27.

A giant chunk of the mountain broke off overnight and flattened a neighborhood on the outskirts of the city of 45,000 in Ciborasso province, about 300 kilometers south of the capital Quito.

At least 240 acres, where 209 houses were located, were affected by the disaster.

The search operation to retrieve the bodies of the dozens of missing persons has not yet ended.

Ecuador is experiencing its worst rainy season in fifteen years, and in late March the government declared a state of emergency in 14 of Ecuador’s 24 provinces so that resources could be freed up to help those affected.

Excluding the Alausi landslide, since the beginning of the year rainfall and flooding have killed 33 people, affected 68,058 others and damaged or completely destroyed 14,697 homes, not including damage to roads, bridges and other public infrastructure.