Maputo  - The death toll from recent flooding in Mozambique has risen to 15, with heavy rains continuing, reported local officials.

The death toll increased by five as deaths from Thursday in the central Mozambican provinces of Sofala and Manica provinces were reported, officials said Friday.

"Four people died and four were injured in the city of Chimoio, Manica province, and one person drowned in the district of Nhamatanda, Sofala province," a source at the National Disaster Management Institute told DPA.

In Chimoio the situation is described as critical. Most neighbourhoods are underwater. Authorities fear more deaths may occur as heavy rain continues to pummel the region.

Many of the deceased are children, swept away while playing in rivers or other bodies of water. At least 1,500 houses have been swept away by the floods, leaving thousands homeless.

Nhamatanda District Administrator Paulo Majacunene was quoted in Friday's issue of the newspaper Noticias saying that the situation there is far from normal as rains continue to fall. He confirmed that one person - part of a group of three - drowned to death in an attempt to Mecumbezi river.

He said that the rains completely isolated four villages in the district, making assistance to the stranded impossible. Some roads in the region were destroyed.

The district of Buzi in Sofala has been cut off from the rest of the country. Even ferry boats are incapable of reaching it due to water levels rising toward a level of 5 metres, which would cue an alert.

Antonio Melembe, the technical department chief of ARA-Centro, a water board management agency, was quoted in Noticias saying that more rain is expected. He predicted that some rivers might be overwhelmed by the waters and flood more areas.

Meanwhile, as the rain continues to fall across the country, Mozambican health authorities are on high alert over a cholera epidemic that has hit several parts of the country.

Fearing a possible cholera outbreak, Maputo health authorities have reactivated the Cholera Treatment Center to deal with a possible surge in number of people seeking treatment from the waterborne disease. Maputo has registered its first case of cholera. In total, there have been 209 cases of cholera, with one death, nationwide since mid-December. (dpa)