At least 30 people have been killed after part of a towering landfill collapsed onto homes in Conakry, Guinea, following heavy overnight rainfall, turning the capital’s wet-season weather into a major disaster.
The collapse struck the Dar Es Salam landfill in the commune of Gbessia at around 02:00 local time on Sunday, August 23. A huge mass of waste slid downhill onto nearby houses and makeshift shelters while many residents were asleep.
Guinean authorities reported a provisional toll of 30 deaths and 22 injuries. Six of those injured were in serious condition, while another 16 suffered lighter injuries.
Excavators and rescue crews continued digging through the enormous piles of compacted waste as authorities searched for additional victims.
🔴GUINÉE 🇬🇳| #Conakry : au moins 30 morts et 22 blessés dans l'éboulement d'une décharge publique sur des habitations dans la capitale : l'accident est survenu à 2h du matin, lorsque suite à des pluies, des tonnes de déchets ont enseveli des habitations du quartier Dar es salam. pic.twitter.com/9VPh32R9aB
— Nanana365 (@nanana365media) August 24, 2026
Heavy rain destabilizes the waste mound
The immediate meteorological trigger was intense overnight rainfall during the height of Guinea’s wet season.
Conakry sits on the Atlantic coast of West Africa and experiences an exceptionally pronounced rainy season. During the boreal summer, the West African monsoon transports very humid air inland from the tropical Atlantic.
Persistent moisture convergence, combined with atmospheric disturbances embedded within the monsoon flow, can produce prolonged periods of intense rainfall along the Guinean coast.
It is with deep sadness that we learned of the landslide tragedy at the Dar-es-Salam landfill in the commune of Gbessia.
— Rahi Group (@Rahi_group) August 24, 2026
At this incredibly painful time, Rahi Group offers our sincere condolences to the bereaved families and expresses our full support for the victims, the… pic.twitter.com/e6CT9YXZ8V
The repeated rainfall becomes particularly dangerous where slopes, soils or artificial structures are already unstable.
At Dar Es Salam, water infiltrating the enormous mound of accumulated refuse likely increased its overall weight while reducing stability within the waste mass. Once part of the mound began moving, gravity allowed a large volume of material to collapse toward the homes immediately below.
Unlike a conventional landslide involving natural soil and rock, landfill failures can contain an unstable mixture of compacted waste, soil and water. Heavy rainfall can therefore act as the final trigger for a structure that has gradually become vulnerable over many years.
Homes were buried during the night
The timing dramatically increased the danger.
Residents reported hearing the waste mass moving before sections of the landfill crashed into the neighborhood. Several homes were destroyed or buried.
Some residents attempting to help people caught in the initial collapse were reportedly struck when another section of the landfill gave way.
Heavy machinery was brought into the area as emergency teams searched through the debris. The response involved security services, medical teams and other emergency personnel, while injured residents were transported for treatment.
Authorities also began moving people away from areas considered vulnerable to another collapse.
The tragedy came at a particularly stark moment. Authorities had already announced plans to secure the area around Dar Es Salam and remove residents because of the recognized landslide danger during the rainy season. The landfill itself was reportedly scheduled to begin closing on the same day the disaster occurred.
Weather was the trigger, but vulnerability magnified the disaster
Heavy rain explains why the landfill failed when it did, but meteorology alone does not explain the scale of the tragedy.
Homes and makeshift structures had been built immediately beside the unstable waste mound, leaving residents exposed to any major collapse. The landfill had also accumulated for years, creating steep slopes of refuse vulnerable to saturation during intense rainfall.
The combination created a dangerous chain: persistent monsoon rainfall saturated the waste, the additional water increased instability, and the collapse then reached densely occupied areas immediately below.
That distinction is important because Guinea remains in its rainy season. Further periods of heavy rain could create additional instability around waste slopes, saturated ground and flood-prone neighborhoods across Conakry.
With rescue and relocation operations continuing, authorities face both an immediate humanitarian emergency and a continuing weather-related hazard.
For communities around Dar Es Salam, the threat did not disappear when the rain stopped. Saturated and disturbed sections of the landfill may remain unstable, making continued evacuations and restrictions around the collapse zone critical while search operations proceed.
