Sri Lanka: landfill collapse kills 15

As the country celebrated the traditional Sinhala and Tamil New Year, a 91-meter-high pile of garbage, destabilized overnight by torrential rains and a fire, collapsed, burying huts in a slum. Police said a total of 145 homes were demolished.

“There was a great noise,” said a man. We heard people screaming. The houses behind us were collapsing, being crushed and rolling. It was like a tsunami. My house has disappeared, three of my neighbors have been buried ”.

More than 600 people have taken temporary refuge at a nearby government school. The authorities were looking for accommodation solutions while the rescuers, assisted by two excavators, continued the search.

Admin Pitisara

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