Local residents in southern Ethiopia were engaged in desperate efforts on Wednesday to locate survivors after the landslide claimed the lives of more than 200 people, marking the deadliest such incident recorded in the Horn of Africa nation. Crowds gathered at the site, with some using shovels or their hands to dig through mud.
By Tuesday afternoon, the death toll had risen to over 229, according to local authorities quoted by the French news agency AFP.
Initially, the Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) reported 157 fatalities from the landslide in the Geze-Gofa district, situated in an isolated mountainous area within the South Ethiopia regional state. Over 24 hours after the disaster struck on Monday morning, five survivors were rescued from the mud and were undergoing medical treatment. Since then 5 more people have been rescued alive.
EBC quoted local administrator Dagemawi Ayele, who noted that many victims perished while attempting to assist inhabitants of a house hit by an initial landslide.
"Those who rushed to save lives perished in the disaster, including the local administrator, teachers, health professionals, and agricultural workers," Dagemawi said.
The search efforts continue. Earlier, the Gofa zone Communications Affairs Department, citing local official Habtamu Fetena, reported 146 fatalities, with the bodies of 96 men and 50 women recovered. The search remains intensive, with concerns that the death toll could rise further.
Images shared by the Gofa authority on social media showed residents carrying deceased individuals on makeshift stretchers, some wrapped in plastic sheeting.
Ethiopia, the second most populous country in Africa, with approximately 120 million people, is highly susceptible to climate-related disasters such as flooding and drought. The African Union Commission chief Moussa Faki Mahamat expressed condolences and solidarity with the Ethiopian people and government, highlighting ongoing rescue efforts and support for those displaced.
The Gofa region, located approximately 450 kilometers north of Addis Ababa, is characterized by its rural, remote, and mountainous terrain. According to an Ethiopian refugee living in Kenya, heavy rains and landslides in such areas are exacerbated by weak soil conditions.
The South Ethiopia regional state has recently faced challenges from short seasonal rains causing flooding and displacement, impacting thousands of people and damaging infrastructure and livelihoods, as reported by the UN's humanitarian response agency OCHA in May.
