On Saturday, August 10, 2024, eight people were confirmed dead and 14 others have been rescued following a devastating incident at the Kiteezi Landfill in Kampala. 

Authorities said a structural failure in the waste mass at the Kiteezi Landfill is believed to have led to the collapse of a section of the landfill, impacting nearby homes and livestock.

However, a 2015 study warned of a disaster. The study was conducted under the title, Study of slope stability and settlement characteristics of Mpererwe Landfill.

Bernard WASSWA, Dickness KAKITAHI, Samuel JJUUKO, James SEMUWEMBA (Department of Civil Engineering, Makerere University) and Denis KALUMBA (Department of Civil Engineering, University of Cape Town) by the time they carried out the study, the landfill received about 600 metric tons of waste per day. However, they said that due to increasing waste volumes, the height of the landfill has increased, giving rise to steep slopes. 

“The stability of these slopes has become a major concern, especially during the rainy season on the northern tipping front,” reads part of the study. 

Major landfill failures are usually associated with site-specific factors such as excessive pore pressures, weak foundation soils, lack of shear strength, excessive settlement in the waste, base liner, and failure along geosynthetic interfaces.

The study also pointed out a knowledge gap regarding the engineering properties of waste generated in Kampala.

Using a number of parameters, the study was done to establish the landfill slope stability. It was against this background that the researchers were able to conclude that the “stability of these slopes has become a major concern, especially during the rainy season on the northern tipping front.”