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Death toll rises after landslide at Uganda rubbish dump

Homes, people and livestock were engulfed by the landslide at a vast landfill site in the capital, Kampala.

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Red Cross officers hold a bereaved family member who lost her daughter and brother when their house was hit by a landfill collapse
Red Cross officers hold a bereaved family member who lost her daughter and brother when their house was hit by the landfill collapse. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
By News Agencies
Published On 11 Aug 2024

The death toll from a landslide at a vast rubbish dump in Uganda’s capital Kampala has risen to 13, according to police, as rescue personnel continued to dig for survivors.

After torrential rain in recent weeks, a chunk of rubbish from the city’s only landfill site broke off late on Friday, crushing and burying homes on the edge of the site as residents slept.

On Saturday, the Kampala Capital City Authority had put the death toll at eight.

“The latest we have is 13 dead, but rescue services are continuing,” police spokesman Patrick Onyango said on Sunday.

At least 14 people have been rescued so far, he said, adding that more could still be trapped but the number is unknown.

Tents have been set up nearby for those displaced by the landslide, the Uganda Red Cross Society said.

The landfill site, known as Kiteezi, has served as Kampala’s sole rubbish dump for decades and had turned into a big hill.

Residents have long complained of hazardous waste polluting the environment and posing a danger to residents.

Efforts by the city authority to procure a new landfill site have dragged on for years.

Men fight for a metallic door from the debris of a house hit by a landfill collapse in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
People remove a metallic gate from the debris of a house hit by the landfill collapse. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
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People look on as an excavator helps search for people trapped under debris after a landfill collapsed in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala collapsed, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
People look on as an excavator helps search for survivors trapped under debris. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
People look on as an excavator helps search for people trapped under debris after a landfill collapsed in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
The death toll from the landslide rose to 13, police said, as rescue personnel continued to dig for survivors. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
Red Cross officers together with community members carry a recovered body from debris following a landfill collapse in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
Red Cross officers together with community members carry a body recovered after the landfill collapse. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
A crime scene police officer seals off the area following the collapse of a landfill in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
A police officer seals off the disaster area. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
People search inside a damaged excavator while searching for a driver trapped under debris after a landfill collapsed in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
At least 14 people have so far been rescued from the debris. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
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A crack is seen in a landfill following the collapse in Kampala on August 10, 2024. - Eight people including two children were killed when mountains of garbage collapsed at a landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala on August 10, the city authority said. (Photo by BADRU KATUMBA / AFP)
A crack is seen in a landfill following the collapse. [Badru Katumba/AFP]