By KT Reporter
The Police have named the victim of Wednesday’s Tangi River flood along the Olwiyo-Pakwach road in Nwoya District.
The deceased was identified as Hassan Yahaya 45, an engineer who worked with Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) Pakwach station.
Yahaya drowned on Wednesday afternoon after a Uganda People’s Defence Forces Marine boat he was on board capsized during a rescue mission along the flooded Owliyo-Pakwach road. He was onboard one of the two boats dispatched by UPDF to rescue 12 stranded passengers on board a taxi registration UBH 418W.
The taxi was swept away by flood water, which cut off the busy Olwiyo-Pakwach highway after the River Tangi burst its banks following a heavy morning downpour. David Ongom Mudong, the Aswa West Region Police Spokesperson said in a statement the deceased body was retrieved Wednesday and taken to Pakwach Health Center IV pending postmortem. Mudong noted that three other occupants of the boat were however rescued alive.
According to Mudong, 12 passengers on board the taxi that was swept by the flood water were equally retrieved and were admitted to Anaka Hospital for first aid.
He notes that the driver of the taxi identified as Mohamed Okello working with Elite Transporters Company Ltd has been arrested pending interrogation by police detectives.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, traffic flow resumed along the busy Olwiyo-Pakwach Highway following yesterday’s flood. This follows emergency restorative efforts conducted by the UNRA team of engineers according to a statement from UNRA.
The roads authority however cautioned motorists to exercise patience in cases of such emergencies for their safety.
“We wish to emphasize the importance of safety; please refrain from crossing flooded areas. Exercise patience and wait for water levels to reduce for your safety and that of others,” the statement posted on X (formerly Twitter reads)-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
