The landslide in a garbage site in Kampala, Uganda, has now claimed a total of 34 persons after four more bodies were recovered from the site on Friday, the police confirmed.
The landslide, which had collapsed in the northern district of Kiteezi seven days ago, resulted in the collapse of homes and resulted in the deaths of humans and some other livestock in the waste area.
An MP for the area has warned that the number of those missing could still rise.
The spokesperson of the Metropolitan Police, Patrick Onyango, confirmed to AFP that the efforts to recover more bodies from the landslide will continue despite the flood which has prevented the rescuers from making use of excavators to ease their operations.
He noted one Abdul Nasir, who has been missing since 2020, was among the bodies that were rescued on Thursday by the team.
With the latest body recovery, the mining figures now stand at 35, down from the initial figures of 39, which the government officially announced.
In a contradictory statement, shadow foreign affairs minister Muwada Nkunyingi, who doubles as the area’s representative in parliament, Stated that more people are missing than police are reporting.
He explained that the community members have indicated that the dead from the incidents could reach over 100 persons; he noted that several individuals have been looking for their family members since the incidents happened.
The mayor of Kampala City, Erias Lukwago, explained that the incident was a national disaster. The mayor had warned about the risk involved in the area, which collects the garbage that is collected from across Kampala; the site was established in 1996.
Excavators have flooded the area, making efforts to rescue more individuals from the rubbish dump, but the heavy flood has prevented the rescuers from maximally doing their job.
Uganda and some other parts of East Africa have been witnessing heavy rains in recent times, which have also flooded some parts of the country.
