Let’s do more to control the effects of flooding

Kisiizi Hospital, located in Kisiizi valley in Kigezi sub-region, suffered flash floods that left patients, caretakers, and the hospital staff scampering for their lives after the area experienced torrential rain that forced water into the wards. 

This is the second time in three years the hospital has been hit by floods. In 2017, the floods claimed three children. 
A week ago, Butaleja District in eastern Uganda was hit by floods where victims were left in desperation after government delayed to respond with relief items. 
Hundreds of people were displaced and gardens washed away by the floods that ravaged the district following the heavy rain.

In Bundibugyo District, flash floods recently submerged more than 200 houses in Kisuba Sub-county. And in Kampala in the recent floods, two people survived drowning after the car they were travelling in plunged into a ditch in Namasuba, off Entebbe road. 
Flooding in Kasese District has become a menace, with River Nyamwamba bursting its banks and causing havoc whenever it rains.

These flood situations are a microcosm of the bigger picture of how frequent and devastating floods have affected country. Each part of the country is having a fair share of disasters caused by flooding yet the response from government is lukewarm, not matching the urgent need on ground leading to more deaths and destruction of property and gardens.
 
Floods are a natural occurrence where man may not have control, however, we can control the effect of flooding by taming nature, providing passages for heavy running water. In Kampala, it is now a nightmare whenever it rains. 
Sections of the city including Industrial Area, Clock Tower and swampy areas of Bwaise and Kalerwe become impassable yet we have a planning unit(s) responsible for drainage infrastructure in the city and countrywide.

Floods are destroying lives and property and yet government seems not to be proactive. Control mechanisms to avert serious effects of flooding should be put in place to avoid a humanitarian crisis likely to arise from there.

Our view is that the issue of floods requires a designated directorate/authority assigned to do feasibility studies in flood-prone areas in the city and around the country, which calls for engineers worthy the title to redesign, say Kampala drainage system, study the topography of prone areas, and install warning systems to be able to save lives and reduce damage to property.