Locals decry constant loss of lives in Lake Bunyonyi
Many people continue to drown in Lake Bunyonyi while using dugout canoes to go for their daily activities, area leaders and residents have said.
The lake lies between Rubanda and Kabale districts and is believed to be the second deepest in Africa after Lake Tanganyika. Lake Bunyonyi hosts 29 islands with institutions of learning, churches, health centres, and a number of tourist sites.
On June 24, two Juveniles that drowned in Lake Bunyonyi, Moreen Ninsiima, 15, a Senior Two student at Creamland High School in Kabale Town and Evidence Kakuru, 15, a pupil at Kyenyi Primary School in Muko Sub-county, Rubanda District were sailing in a makeshift canoe while returning from harvesting crops from their family gardens. They were all residents of Karambo village Ikamiro Parish, Muko Sub-county in Rubanda.
Five people from different families in Hamukaka Village in Kyenyi Parish, Muko Sub-county drowned in June 2018 after the canoe in which they were sailing capsised as they crossed to Karambo Landing Site to work in their crop gardens.
On August 20, 2016, five people from the same family in Rwanyena Village, Rubaya Sub-county in Kabale drowned in the lake after a locally made boat capsised.
They were returning from a wedding function in the neighbouring main land of Kamuganguzi Sub-county.
Many people on the islands use canoes to carry agriculture produce to Kyevu and Muko markets in Rubanda District. The chairperson of Ryakarimira Town Council in Kabale District, Mr Enock Kazooba, said at least four people drown in the lake every month.
“We hope this situation will change once the proposed establishment of a ferry means of transport is fulfilled by government,” Mr Kazooba says.
Mr Pastoli Twinomuhangi, the Rubanda chairperson, says: “June, July and August are the worst months because there is too much wind and strong waves in the lake.”
Mr Elidadi Tuwangye, a resident of Harutinda Village, Kitumba Sub-county in Kabale, says almost every household around Lake Bunyonyi has a dugout canoe they use to cross the lake for farming, schooling and attending religious and other social activities such as wedding and burials.
“These canoes are sometimes overloaded with passengers and agriculture produce. Establishment of a ferry or having several engine boats on Lake Bunyonyi can reduce fatal accidents,” Mr Tuwangye says.
The Kigezi regional police spokesperson, Mr Elly Matter, said many cases of people who drown in the lake are not reported by locals because they are not criminal in nature.
President’s pledge
During the2016 presidential campaigns, President Museveni promised to establish a ferry on Lake Bunyonyi following a plea from locals.
Last month, a team of officials from Uganda National Roads Authority led by the director of road infrastructure, Mr Reuben Tumwebaze, visited the lake for a feasibility study on the establishment of two ferries.
