The ceremony of homage to the deceased took place on November 9, 2019 instead of the Bafoussam festivities.
The day of Saturday, November 9, 2019 was a day of national mourning in Cameroon in tribute to the 43 victims of the Gouache disaster. This by presidential decree signed on November 8, 2019 by the President of the Republic Paul Biya, National Day of Mourning in memory of the 43 people who lost their lives in Gouache 4, block 6, Bafoussam, following the fatal landslide in the Night of October 28 to 29, 2019. Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute presided over the tribute ceremony in place of the Bafoussam celebrations, thus personally representing the Head of State. In front of the tribune, 43 coffins, large and small, woven by local artisans are lined up ... Never have the populations of the chief town of the Western Region seen so many coffins and such a ballet of hearses. The village Bamendou, located in the district of Penka Michel in the department of Menoua, paid the heaviest price with 30 dead on the 43 people died, deplores the superior chief Bamendou, SM Gabriel Tsidie: 12 people still hospitalized are still originating from his traditional command unit. The others are nationals of the Batcham group, in the Bamboutos. According to Gabriel Tsidie, "the day of national mourning is a reaction of humanity and sensitivity of those who govern us. But more should be done to prevent this type of disaster from happening again. The managers of our cities must ensure that the areas inhabited by the populations do not present a risk to their security. " All this without forgetting the people's unconsciousness and incivism regarding urban disorder.
