Parliament Declares National Mourning for Landslide Victims in Gofa Zone

Jul 28 , 2024

Parliament has declared a three-day national mourning period to honour the memory of hundreds who lost their lives in a catastrophic landslide in Gofa Zone, Southern Ethiopia Regional State. The tragedy, which struck on July 24, 2024, was the result of intense rain showers in the Gezi Gofa wereda, claiming nearly 257 lives, according to aid agencies. The Ethiopian Red Cross Society, alongside volunteers and emergency workers, continues their search and rescue efforts two days after the disaster. Armed with shovels and their bare hands, they are arduously digging through mud in a desperate attempt to locate survivors. A report from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) has warned that the death toll may rise, potentially reaching up to 500. The landslide has displaced over 125 residents, and a dozen severely injured individuals have been transferred to Sawla Hospital for urgent medical care. The humanitarian situation in the region remains critical. The UNOCHA report unveils the vulnerability of 1,320 children under five years of age and nearly 5,293 women, who are at high risk due to the ongoing threat of further landslides. This disaster struck just three weeks after the Ethiopian Meteorological Institute issued a warning about the likelihood of heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides affecting Addis Abeba and several regions in the west, north, centre, and northeast of the country.