Kasese floods claim five lives in one week

At least five people have died in Kasese District in a space of one week as a result of mudslides and floods triggered by heavy rain.

District leaders said the deceased’s bodies were recovered from various rivers and mudslide affected areas in several sub-counties, where crops and banana plantations were also washed away.

The floods also left the roads and bridges damaged while some cattle were killed. The flooded rivers include Muhokya, Mubuku, Sebwe and Nyamwamba. 

The latest incidents happened on Sunday and yesterday in Kaghema and Butera villages in Buhuhira Sub-county.

Yesterday in Butera Village, the mudslides claimed the life of a four-year-old girl, leaving three others injured. 

This was after a heavy downpour that started on Sunday evening around 8pm and went up to yesterday morning.

The Buhuhira Sub-county chairperson, Mr Hudson Musale, said the child died after mudslides hit a semi-permanent house belonging to Mr Wilson Siriwayo.

“The house was accommodating seven people but the rest survived with minor injuries,” he said.  

A similar incident happened last week where two people; Mr Benon Kisembo, 20, and Mr Alfred Mbonimb, 41, all residents of Karusandara Sub-county, died as they attempted to cross the flooded rivers of Kabaka and Mubuku. 

Kisembo died on April 22 while Mbonimba died last Friday.

Body retrieved

On April 24, the residents of Muhokya retrieved the body of Robert Masereka from River Muhokya. The deceased was a resident of Kyamiza Village, Muhokya Sub-county.

The deceased had gone missing following the April 23 downpour that lasted four hours. The body was first seen by some farmers who had gone to tend to their gardens.

Another body of Anthony Bwambale, 11, was also retrieved from a valley on Sunday afternoon in Katerera Village, Kitabbu Sub-county, where he had gone to collect firewood.

Bwambale, who hailed from Nyamambuka Cell in Mpondwe lhubiriha Town Council, was staying with his mother, Ms Jazila Kighoma, in Kaghema Vllage in Kyalhumba Sub-county. 

Following last Saturday’s heavy downpour, the floods washed away gardens and destroyed houses in the villages of Kibirigha 1 and Kibirigha 2 in Kyarumba Sub-county.

Displaced

Some of the residents whose houses were destroyed were by Saturday evening temporarily camped at Kibirigha Catholic Church.

Mr Mughuruka Baluku Jackson, the Kyalhumba Sub-county chairperson, said the affected residents need urgent relief items.

“The rain had a heavy storm and people feared that their houses would collapse because they are semi-permanent and that is why they had to take refuge at the local catholic church of Kibirigha while others went to Holy Trinity Catholic Church. They now fear for their lives,” he said. The 23rd downpour also left the makeshift bridge erected by the Srilank Company on River Nyamwamba connecting two villages of Kyanjuki and Katiri broken.

The bridge that connects to Masule Primary School on River Nyamwamba was also swept away.

Kasese District chairperson Eliphazi Muhindi, while visiting Butera Village yesterday, asked the locals to relocate from disaster prone areas to safer places.

Mr Neckson Bangahi, the head teacher of Kyalhumba Primary School in Kyalhumba Town Council, asked parents to monitor the movements of their children during the rainy season. 

“We are breaking off for the first term officially on May 5, and in the period of one month, parents should ensure that they know where their children have gone to play from, because we are in a rainy season,” Mr Bangahi said.

By Joel Kaguta, Alex Ashaba & Moureen Biira