My family went to help landslide victims and ended up dead

In the Gofa district of southern Ethiopia, a tragic event unfolded that left many families in despair. Meselesh Gosaye, a mother of six, was at home caring for her children when she heard a loud noise that signaled a landslide. 'There were sounds of people screaming, and we rushed down the hill,' she recalled, her voice trembling with emotion. The area where Meselesh lived is known for its hilly terrain, which poses a risk of floods and landslides, especially after heavy rains. The villages in this region are characterized by mud-walled houses with tin roofs, some perched on the hills while others are located at the base. On the day of the disaster, the ground was slippery and dangerous due to the recent rainfall. Despite the risks, Meselesh, her husband, and some of their children hurried to the site of the landslide. When they arrived, they were met with a heartbreaking sight: the earth had swallowed entire houses. Many villagers had gathered, instinctively digging through the mud with their bare hands and shovels, desperately trying to rescue those trapped beneath. Unfortunately, their efforts yielded limited success; while a few individuals were pulled out alive, many more remained buried. 'It was a sad day,' Meselesh said, reflecting on the overwhelming sense of loss. Recognizing the need for more help, local officials convened an emergency meeting the following day. They urged every able-bodied adult and older child to gather any farming tools they could find, such as shovels, axes, and hoes, to assist in the rescue efforts. The site was inaccessible to vehicles, making it impossible to bring in heavy machinery. Meselesh's husband and her two eldest sons, aged 15 and 12, immediately joined the search-and-rescue team, while she returned home to care for her toddler and prepare food for her other children. After fulfilling her responsibilities, she went back to the rescue site, only to encounter a more tragic scene. A second landslide had occurred, burying many of those who were involved in the rescue mission. Overcome with emotion, Meselesh rushed to the area where her husband and children had been working, but others stopped her, warning that it was still too dangerous. 'They said I still had kids at home and I had to survive for them,' she recounted. As news of the double tragedy spread throughout the nearby villages, hundreds of people came to assist in the search. The digging continued for days, with families desperately searching for their missing loved ones. Some, including the local leader who had been organizing the rescue efforts after the first landslide, were quickly confirmed dead. At one point, Meselesh witnessed diggers pulling a body from the mud and thought it was her husband. 'I started helping,' she said, believing he was alive. Tragically, he had died, still clutching the axe he had taken with him to help those trapped in the first landslide. 'His face was unrecognizable. To be sure, I checked his chest pocket because I knew he kept his ID card there. It was him. I screamed. ' As her husband's body was being moved to a safe location, Meselesh could not leave the site, as her two sons were still missing. 'I was torn between going and remaining behind,' she said, her heart heavy with grief. Later, the body of her 12-year-old son was recovered, but her 15-year-old son remained unaccounted for at the time of her interview with the BBC. 'How I suffered giving birth to my children, raising them, educating them. It’s so sad for me,' she expressed, overwhelmed by her loss. The death toll from the landslides was staggering, with 257 confirmed dead and estimates from the UN suggesting that the number could rise to 500 as more mud was excavated in the coming days. Serawit Yohannes, who was searching for his father and half-brother, shared that many families were in the same situation, making it difficult for them to help each other. 'Not even relatives are helping us dig,' he said, 'as they themselves have two or three family members they have to look for. ' The UN reported that approximately 15,000 people would need to be relocated from the hills to prevent future disasters, a task that would require significant resources and effort. For Meselesh, the only way to find closure would be to locate her missing son. The community would face a long and challenging road to recovery.