Death toll rises to 30 in Uganda garbage dump landslide: police


KAMPALA, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- The death toll of the garbage dump site landslide in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, climbed to 30 Wednesday, a police spokesperson said here.

Six more dead bodies aged between 3 and 33 years were retrieved from the garbage dump site located in Kawempe, one of the five divisions of Kampala, Patrick Onyango, spokesperson for the Kampala Metropolitan Police, told Xinhua over the telephone.

"Today (Wednesday), the rescue team managed to retrieve six bodies that were trapped down. This makes a total of 30 bodies so far recovered," said Onyango from the scene of the Saturday morning disaster.

At least 39 people have been registered missing following a landslide in the affected three villages of Lusanja, Kitetika, and Kiteezi, according to the preliminary findings released by the registration committee that was set up to register all the affected people, houses destroyed or buried.

According to the police and the Office of the Prime Minister, a total of 120 people have been registered at a temporary shelter at the Kiteezi Church of Uganda Primary School playground.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Sunday called for an investigation into the incident, saying people should not have been allowed to live near the landfill. He directed Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja to coordinate the removal of all households in the zone.

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