QUITO — The death toll from the March 26 landslide in central Ecuador's Chimborazo province rose to 43, the Attorney General's Office said Wednesday.

The agency said on social media that it had "ordered the removal of 4 (more) bodies from the landslide in Alausi," a rural district in the country's Andean region.

"As of today, 43 people have died in the natural disaster," it added.

Heavy rains sparked a massive nighttime landslide that buried buildings, streets and everything else across 24.3 hectares, according to the Risk Management Secretariat.

A total of 41 bodies were recovered at the site, while two victims died in hospital, the secretariat said. In addition, 45 people remained missing, 43 sustained injuries and 32 were rescued, it added.

The landslide destroyed 163 houses and left 1,034 people homeless. Fire department and military crews continued search and rescue operations for potential survivors, amid the risk of another landslide.

The mudslide happened overnight burying dozens of homes in the village of Alausi in Chimborazo province, some 300 kilometers (180 miles) south of Quito.

Shocked residents, many in tears, stood waiting for news as crews with shovels, pick axes and sniffer dogs dug through the debris to get to survivors stuck between sheets of twisted metal and split tree trunks.

Alausi, a village of some 45,000 people surrounded by green hills, also saw several public buildings hit by the avalanche, which damaged roads and closed three schools.

Ecuadoran President Guillermo Lasso, on March 26, said on Twitter that firefighters from neighboring areas had been rushed to the village to help people affected by the tragedy.

The government mobilized the national police, armed forces, the Health Ministry and the Red Cross to help with the rescue efforts.

Since the start of the year, heavy rains in Ecuador have caused the deaths of people, destroyed homes and damaged 0 residences, according to the SNGR risk management secretariat. The downpours have caused close to 1,000 dangerous events, such as landslides and flooding.

Ecuador's Andean valleys can have a rainy season that lasts from October until May. — Agencies