Guinea buries 36 killed in Conakry landfill collapse

Guinea held a mass funeral Friday for 36 people killed when part of a landfill collapsed in a suburb of Conakry after heavy rains.

Authorities announced the updated toll during the ceremony and said 17 Sierra Leonean nationals were among the dead.

Many victims were sleeping when part of the large garbage dump near homes in the Dar-es-Salam neighbourhood gave way overnight between August 22 and 23.

The bodies were taken to a mosque in Bambeto, a Conakry suburb, for Muslim funeral prayers, then to Bambeto cemetery for burial. Thousands attended, including relatives, religious leaders and government officials.

Around 20 people remain hospitalised, and more than 1,600 people have received assistance, according to Guinea's emergency management agency.

Authorities have been demolishing houses in the zone considered at risk from the rubbish dump, saying the work is needed to protect residents from another tragedy. Residents have criticised the conditions of the operation and called for relocation assistance.