'Disaster waiting to happen': Uganda garbage landslide death toll rises to 19; rescue efforts ongoing
Kiteezi landfill
Death toll from the garbage landslide at a landfill in Uganda's capital Kampala went up to 19 on Sunday (August 11).
A day earlier, on Saturday (August 10), the Kiteezi landfill, triggered by torrential rains, had a massive collapse engulfing homes, livestock, and people under piles of rubbish.
Rescue operation ongoing
Speaking to AFP, resident commissioner Yasin Ndide said thatNineteen people including five children have been confirmed dead.
"The rescue mission is ongoing but with little hope of finding more survivors," he said.
Just hours earlier, Kampala's metropolitan police spokesman Patrick Onyango told the news agency that they have "so far retrieved 12 dead bodies from the garbage heap and rescued 14 people alive."
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"The rescue operation is still ongoing until we are sure no one is trapped under (the garbage)," he said. Onyango revealed that they have rescued several animals including a dog.
"In our estimation, about 1,000 people have been displaced by the incident and (we are) currently working with other agencies of government and the community leadership to see how to help the affected people," he added.
On Saturday, Kampala Capital City Authority, which operates the landfill, gave a death toll of eight, including two children.
Disaster waiting to happen
The city's honorary mayor Erias Lukwago, as per AFP, described the garbage landfill as a disaster waiting to happen. Earlier this year, Lukwago had raised concerns about the potential health risks from the waste.
Lukwago told the news agency that the 36-acre (14-hectare) site in a northern district of the capital Kampala, was full to capacity.
"This is a disaster and was bound to happen," he said.
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In January, he had warned that people working and living near the Kiteezi landfill were in danger of health hazards due to the overflowing garbage there.
He said that the landfill received about 1,500 tonnes of waste every day, and it is the site for almost all the garbage collected across Kampala.
Describing the situation as a "national crisis" he alleged that the site was not maintained at all. He said that the nation's central government and parliament needed to step in.
(With inputs from agencies)
