46 dead, dozens missing in slide

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — A mountain of trash gave way in a huge garbage dump on the outskirts of Ethiopia’s capital, killing at least 46 people and leaving several dozen missing, residents said, as officials vowed to relocate those who called the landfill home.

Addis Ababa city spokeswoman Dagmawit Moges said most of the dead were women and children.

It was not immediately clear what caused Saturday night’s slide at the Koshe Garbage Landfill, which buried several makeshift homes and concrete buildings. The landfill has been a dumping ground for the capital’s garbage for more than 50 years.

About 150 people were there when the slide occurred, said resident Assefa Teklemahimanot. Addis Ababa Mayor Diriba Kuma said 37 people had been rescued and were receiving medical treatment.

Many people at the landfill had been scavenging items at the site to make a living. Others live there because renting homes, largely built of mud and sticks, is relatively inexpensive.

“My house was right inside there,” said a shaken Tebeju Asres, pointing to where an excavator was digging in deep, black mud. “My mother and three of my sisters were there when the landslide happened. Now I don’t know the fate of all of them.”

The resumption of garbage dumping at the site in recent months probably caused the landslide, Assefa said. The dumping had stopped in recent years, but it resumed after farmers in a nearby restive region where a new garbage landfill complex was being built blocked dumping in their area.