Death toll from Uganda rubbish dumb landslide rises to 12, police say

The death toll from a garbage landslide at a vast landfill in the Ugandan capital Kampala has risen to 12, police said on Sunday.

Local media said homes, people and livestock had been engulfed in mountains of rubbish at the dump in Kiteezi, northern Kampala, on Saturday after heavy rainfall.

“We have so far retrieved 12 dead bodies from the garbage heap and rescued 14 people alive,” Kampala’s metropolitan police spokesman Patrick Onyango told AFP.

“The rescue operation is still ongoing until we are sure no one is trapped under (the garbage),” he said, adding that several animals had been rescued alive, including a dog.

Kampala Capital City Authority had initially given a death toll of eight including two children from the disaster.

“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,” Onyango said.

Kampala mayor Erias Lukwago told AFP on Saturday that the Kiteezi landfill, a 36-acre (14 hectare) site, was full to capacity.

“This is a disaster and was bound to happen,” he added.