Rescue workers watch as excavators dig into a pile of garbage in search of missing people following a landslide when a mound of trash collapsed on an informal settlement at the Koshe garbage dump in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Bereaved families tussled with rescue workers on Tuesday at the site of an Ethiopian rubbish dump where a landslide killed 65 people this weekend.
Relatives pushed and shoved the handful of emergency workers, angrily accusing them of delays and saying dozens of people were still missing after Saturday’s disaster at the Reppi dump in the capital of Addis Ababa.
Hundreds of people live on the 50-year-old dump, the city’s only landfill site, scavenging for food and items they can sell such as recyclable metal. The landslide destroyed 49 homes.
“Nobody is helping us. We are doing all the digging ourselves. It is shameful,” Kaleab Tsegaye, a relative of one victim told Reuters.
On Monday, hundreds of people gathered at the scene, weeping and praying. Some accuse the government of negligence.
Ethiopia is one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies, but the drive to industrialize has also stoked discontent among those who feel left behind.
In October, the government imposed a national state of emergency after more than 500 people were killed in protests in Oromiya region as anger over a development scheme sparked broader anti-government demonstrations.
(Reporting by Aaron Masho; Editing by Clement Uwiringiyimana and Louise Ireland)
