Three children who drowned in dam laid to rest

It was a sombre mood on Monday as three children who drowned in a dam were laid to rest.

The twin brothers;  Bonny Kato, 10, and Benon Wasswa,10 were buried at Kimole Village in Lwampanga Sub-county,  Nakasongola District while the third child, Davin Ssebijju, 7,was buried at Kisalizi Village.

At the twins’ burial, Mr Sam Tingira, the Nakasongola  LC5 vice chairperson, cautioned parents against negligence.

He said the district had registered five deaths related to drowning in the last four months.

“These children left home to play at the dam. It is the duty of parents to keep watch of the children at a time when they are out of school,” Mr Tingire told mourners at Kimole Village.

“We cannot do away with the dams because they are the only source of water for the families but we rally parents to keep watch over the children. We have registered about five deaths in the last four months at the different dams,” he said.

The Savana police spokesperson, Mr Isah Ssemwogerere, on Monday said the police authorised the burial for the deceased children after the post-mortem that was conducted at Lwampanga Health Centre IV.

The trio, who were playing, drowned on Sunday after they reportedly, attempted to use a floating piece of timber to manoeuvre through the flooded dam.

Mr Benon Mbowa, the area LC1 Chairperson, said the trio were part of a group of seven children who had gone swimming at the dam.

“They were playing in deep waters at the dam when they drowned. It is unfortunate that we lost them,” he said.

Mr Henry Muwanguzi, a resident, explained that the seven children had earlier been chased away at one of the community water sources where they had tried to play in the water.

“The seven children later relocated to another dam to  swim. Three children first tried out their luck using an abandoned piece of wood to manoeuvre through the water as the other four children watched. When they disappeared, the other three ran back home to inform the adults,” he explains.

The deceased twin brothers were pupils at Kisalizi Primary School.

“At this time when the children are out of school, they take time to swim and play at the dams among other water bodies.

Unfortunately, the parents of these children were not aware of the movements of these children. Some children go fishing on Lake Kyoga. It is unfortunate that we have lost these young children,” Mr Sam Kigula, the Nakasongola LC5 Chairperson, told the Daily Monitor in an interview.

Savana Region Police SpokespersonSemwogere, urged parents to take responsibility for their respective children.

Issue

In July, the World Health Organisation  reported that drowning is now a leading cause of death for children aged under five in many countries.

Around 2.5 million people drowned in the decade to 2019, the WHO said, as it set out a series of simple measures to help reduce the “entirely preventable” toll.

The WHO added that around 60 percent of all drownings were among those under the age of 30, with the highest rates among children aged under five.