Severe flooding in the southern Ivory Coast city of Abidjan has forced hundreds of people from their homes, triggered numerous landslides and has left at least 15 people dead, the country's interior minister says.

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Torrential rains triggered severe flooding across Abidjan yesterday night and killed 15 people, washed away houses and displaced hundreds of families, Sidiki Diakite told journalists on Tuesday.

The total number of deaths was unclear, with various news agencies reporting 15 to 18 dead.

More than 100 people have been rescued in the city that is home to 5 million, Aljazeera reports. 

"Many residents are perched on the roofs of their homes," Fiacre Kili, the head of the civil protection agency, told Agence France Presse. "Searches are going on."

(MORE: Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh in 'Grave Danger' From Monsoonal Flooding, Landslides)

The heavy rains that continue to fall on the African nation have triggered numerous sinkholes, making travel difficult on already inundated roads. 

The country's rainy season continues through October.