Kampala: The death toll from a landslide at a massive garbage dump in Kampala, Uganda, has risen to 13, according to police on Sunday. Rescue operations are ongoing as personnel continue to search for survivors.
Following recent heavy rains, a portion of waste from the city’s only landfill, Kiteezi, collapsed late Friday, burying homes on the outskirts as residents slept. Initial reports from Saturday had the death toll at eight.
“The latest we have is 13 dead, but rescue services are continuing,” stated police spokesperson Patrick Onyango. He added that at least 14 people have been rescued so far, with more potentially trapped, although the exact number remains unknown.
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The Uganda Red Cross has set up tents for those displaced by the landslide. Kiteezi landfill, which has served as Kampala’s sole dump for decades, had evolved into a large hill, prompting long-standing concerns from residents about hazardous waste pollution and safety.
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City authorities have faced delays in securing a new landfill site. Similar disasters have occurred across Africa due to poorly managed municipal waste. In 2017, a landslide at a garbage dump in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, resulted in at least 115 deaths, while a 2018 disaster in Maputo, Mozambique, claimed at least 17 lives.
