APAC, UGANDA: At least nine people of the thirteen passengers who were sailing across the River Nile on Monday are missing after a canoe they were travelling in capsized on the River in the Northern Apac District.
According to local authorities, the victims were reportedly travelling from Apac to Kiryandongo District when the 5 am tragedy befell them on the River.
By press time on Monday evening, four of the 13 passengers had been rescued and admitted at a medical facility at Masindi Port while the 9 others were still missing with efforts to search for their bodies underway.
Mr Moses Ssejussi, the LC1 of Waitumba Village where the canoe set off from told this website that the operators of the ill-fated canoe were drunk and this might have caused the accident at dusk.
“When these people arrived at the landing site, the operators of the recommended boats were not yet around. They then approached some drunkards at the bar who accepted to transport them. They picked a very small canoe which capsized when they were about to land on the other side,” said Mr Ssejussi.
An eyewitness who was around when the canoe set off narrated that; “They were 11 in numbers crossing to Kiryandongo, they then got two people one called Olega who accepted to transport them. Their canoe capsized and 9 people drowned and two of them and the canoe operators survived.”
The officer in charge at Apac Central Police Station, Mr Christopher Beingana when approached for a statement confirmed the incident although he did not give further details.
“I was informed but still I have not yet got the facts. They called me but they didn’t give me the details. I want to first verify as well,” Mr Beingana said.
The incident happened at the time when Masindi Port Ferry is still grounded for routine maintenance.
The ferry suspended its operation on Saturday, July 8, and will resume operation on July 14, 2023.
Previous boat accidents
On June 15, 2022, five people died when a boat capsized on River Nile. The ill-fated boat with 11 passengers on board, according to police, was transporting sand from Kimaka in Jinja City to Njeru Landing Site in Buikwe District
On April 3, 2022, six people died on Lake Victoria when a boat they were travelling in capsized. The boat was transporting building materials, including cement and stones from Kiyindi Landing Site in Buikwe District to Namatale Landing Site in Buvuma District.
On November 24, 2018, a cruise boat, MV Templar, capsized near Mutima Beach on the shores of Lake Victoria and claimed the lives of more than 30 people.
On September 3, 2019, five people died in a passenger boat accident between Bukasa Island in Kalangala District and Mukono District. Police said the boat hit a rock near Nkese Island in Kalangala District and capsized.
On January 24, 2021, seven people drowned after a boat they were sailing in capsized. The victims were sailing from Lwanabatya Landing Site in Kalangala District to Kasenyi Landing Site in Entebbe.
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