Kampala, August 12 – The death toll has risen to 18 following the collapse of a massive garbage dump in Kampala, Uganda’s capital. The incident occurred on the night of August 9 amid heavy rains, causing a significant pile of waste to give way and bury several nearby houses.

The collapse happened at the Kiteji garbage dump, the only waste disposal site in the capital, which had accumulated a large mountain of refuse over time. The recent heavy rainfall, which has led to increased flooding and landslides in the region, contributed to the disaster. 

Many residents were killed in their sleep as their homes were buried under the debris. Rescue operations, led by local police and assisted by the Red Cross, have been ongoing for three days. According to police spokesperson Patrick Onyango, the search for potential survivors continues, and the number of casualties may rise. Fourteen people have been rescued alive from the wreckage.

This tragedy echoes previous incidents of landslides and collapses in other locations, such as the 2017 landslide in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which claimed 115 lives, and a similar disaster in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2018, which resulted in 17 deaths.