The death toll from a deadly landslide in western Kenya has risen to 26 after four more bodies were retrieved.

The latest update on casualties came as rescue efforts were suspended on Sunday due to a flash flood in the Rift Valley area.

Kenya’s interior minister Kipchumba Murkomen said 25 people are still missing and that the government had intensified the search, with the military deploying four aircraft to help teams access the area that has been completely cut off after roads were washed away during Saturday’s landslide.

On Sunday, search teams had to abandon the site after flash floods from a hill in the Chesongoch area in Kenya’s Rift Valley region.

Heavy rains continue across Kenya, and floods have been reported in several counties, displacing thousands of people.

The government has urged those living in flood or landslide-prone areas to move, as the rains are expected to continue across the country.

Murkomen said the government would continue airlifting supplies to those affected, including to 15 schools that have been cut off, and that ongoing national examination papers would be airlifted to candidates.

He said the government would cover the medical bills of more than 30 injured people and resettle dozens of others whose homes were swept away.

AP Video: Andrew Kasuku