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| Sri Lanka rubbish dump collapse kills 16 | Sri Lanka rubbish dump collapse kills 16 |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| At least 16 people, including four children, have died after a huge rubbish dump collapsed on to their homes in Sri Lanka. | At least 16 people, including four children, have died after a huge rubbish dump collapsed on to their homes in Sri Lanka. |
| The 300ft-high (91m) pile had shifted after floods and a fire, and subsequently collapsed on Friday. | The 300ft-high (91m) pile had shifted after floods and a fire, and subsequently collapsed on Friday. |
| At least 40 homes on the edge of the dump were destroyed, with four children aged between 11 and 15 killed. | At least 40 homes on the edge of the dump were destroyed, with four children aged between 11 and 15 killed. |
| There had been concerns over the safety of the site in Colombo, with residents demanding it be cleared. | There had been concerns over the safety of the site in Colombo, with residents demanding it be cleared. |
| The AFP news agency said about 800 tonnes of waste were added to the Meethotamulla dump every day, and that the government had planned to remove it. | The AFP news agency said about 800 tonnes of waste were added to the Meethotamulla dump every day, and that the government had planned to remove it. |
| "We heard a massive sound. It was like thunder," one resident, Kularathna, told the Reuters news agency. "Tiles in our house got cracked. Black water started coming in." | |
| Emergency officials told the BBC that up to 20 people may remain buried in their houses, with the Sri Lankan army now co-ordinating the recovery. | Emergency officials told the BBC that up to 20 people may remain buried in their houses, with the Sri Lankan army now co-ordinating the recovery. |
| One disaster emergency official told AFP the death toll would have been higher had many people not left their homes after the fire at the dump, hours before the collapse. | One disaster emergency official told AFP the death toll would have been higher had many people not left their homes after the fire at the dump, hours before the collapse. |
| The collapse occurred as many people were marking Aluth Avurudda, or the Sinhalese New Year, a major public holiday across Sri Lanka. | |
| Last month, a landslide at a rubbish dump in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, killed at least 113 people. | Last month, a landslide at a rubbish dump in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, killed at least 113 people. |