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At least 58 people were killed in western Colombia on Monday when flash floods triggered an avalanche of mud and debris which swept away houses as people slept, The Telegraph reports.

Rocks, trees and piles of mud littered the town of Salgar, where dozens of homes were devastated in the mudslides which hit at around 3am local time.

Bodies of the victims were being brought to the local cemetery to be identified on Monday. 

Those that were claimed were handed over to relatives. 

Officials said some bodies were also being transferred to Medellin, 100 kilometres to the north-east, for identification.
 
Colombia's rugged topography, in a seismically active area at the northern edge of the Andes, combined with shoddy construction practices, has made the country one of Latin America's most disaster-prone.