At least 15 people are reported to have lost their lives and 10 others were injured after a landslide, triggered by days of heavy rainfall, swept through Maneah — a rural commune located about 50 kilometers from Guinea’s capital, Conakry.
Authorities cautioned that the death toll could rise as search and rescue operations continued late into Thursday. Entire families were caught beneath the rubble when the hillside gave way on Wednesday night, burying homes that accommodated more than 20 households.
Guinea’s parliamentary leader, Dansa Kourouma, was among those on the ground, joining residents and emergency crews as they worked desperately to uncover survivors. “I am with my people and we must combine our small efforts with the collective effort, our small intelligence with the collective intelligence to succeed, to find people in life, and I pray and I offer my prayer. Before coming here, I prayed that we would save as many lives as possible,” he told reporters.
Local volunteers, armed with both heavy machinery and simple tools, rushed to assist in the rescue mission. Volunteer first responder Mamadou Bangoura described the urgency of the situation: “We moved the tank carrier, the machines to come and dig up those who are there because there was a landslide. All the houses were home to about twenty families, all the houses had floors. So when we came, there was no access. We bought shovels, we sent a lot of things to save the people.”
The National Agency for Emergency Management confirmed that the landslide followed prolonged heavy rains, highlighting Guinea’s growing vulnerability to climate-related disasters. The tragedy comes just a year after severe floods devastated much of West Africa, killing more than 1,000 people and displacing hundreds of thousands across the region.
Rescue teams remain on site as grieving families continue the desperate search for relatives still missing beneath the debris.
