From: Leo Odera Omolo
A woman and her son died instantly and two others sustained serious injuries on Monday evening when a stone quarry collapse and buried them at Kyambaazi in Wakiso district.
A resident of Kyambazzi village points at the spot where six people were buried by stone dust in Nsang
Robinah Nassuna, 28, and her son, Alex Yiiga 16, died at 6:30pm when a stone quarry, from which they were extracting stones, curved in on them.
Her two daughters, Betty Nalubega, 12, and Olive Nakacwa, 14, escaped with injuries.
The two were taken to Appointed Harvesters Medical Centre in Kitemu trading centre in a critical condition and later transferred to Mulago Hospital.
Andrew Bukenya, 42, the father of the children, said his family had been involved in stone quarrying since they were evicted from their 10-acre piece of land several years ago. Bukenya, who had six children with Nassuna, said their three other children had gone to fetch water.
Ssempala Nakirande, a wife to David Ssempala, the owner of the stone quarry, said the family had been told to stop extracting stones from the quarry, which was estimated to be about 20 feet deep.
“The quarry had developed cracks,” she said.
An eyewitness, Nakimbugwe Sitenda, said Nassuna and her son died as they tried to escape.
“We were around when the quarry started collapsing and we told them to get out but they failed. Nasuuna and her three children were buried alive but we managed to rescue Nalubega and Nakacwa,” she said.
Another eye witness, who only identified himself as Dan, said the bodies were retrieved from the debris at 8:00pm.
“It took us more than two hours to get the bodies out,” he said.
Residents said a three-year-old boy and two women were killed in similar accidents in 2004 and 2005 respectively.
The officer in charge of Nsangi Police Station, Baker Kawonawo, attributed the incident to carelessness, adding that the Police would intensify community policing to sensitise residents on how to prevent such incidents.
The LC3 chairman, Vincent Kigozi, said most of the residents are engaged in stone quarrying.
“The stone quarry business is dangerous. We tried to ban the activity but our people have no alternative jobs,” he said.
Deputy Kampala Police spokesperson Ibin Ssenkumbi said the Police had launched an inquiry into the matter
Meanwhile two pupuils of Oketkwer Primary School in Aromo County,Lira distrit n Noirthern Uganda diued on Monday when a piut latrine collapsed on them.
Police have identified the dead as Jaspher Felix Okwor and Jimmy Ikweta both primary seven exam candidate this year.
A senior woman teacher at thr school Lillian Akello said the disaetr struck at around 7.30.A>M before the begining of classes.
She attributed the incident to shoddy construction work and the rains.which have softened the soil.
Ends