Fisherman Drowns in Lake Kimira

Twenty-five year old Abdul Mugabi has drowned in Lake Kimira, in Lwemba sub county, in Bugiri district this Sunday morning.

It is reported that Mugabi had gone fishing alongside his colleague Dauda Mukooki, at around 4:30am when they run into a storm.

Mukooki managed to swim through to the shores of lake Kimira, where well-wishers rushed him to a private health facility within Lwemba trading center.

Mukooki told journalists that, the storm made their boat capsized in the middle of the lake. 

"The accident occurred in the middle of the lake when it was still dark and not even our colleagues at the shoreline, would come to the rescue since the lake was experiencing a heavy storm," he said.

Joshua Baliddawa, the Kimira village chairperson says that fishermen within the area lack proper fishing and protective gears which exposes them to danger.

Balidawa says that they have registered three fatal cases of drowning in the past seven months, whereas, severe and minor accidents are never captured since victims rarely involve the local authorities. 

"Kimira is a small lake without any government inspection for sensitizing fishermen on the acceptable fishing gears, and most of them lack life jackets which has contributed to the rise in the number of water related accidents," he says.

Busoga East's police spokesperson, Diana Nandawula confirms the incident, adding that detectives have been deployed to conduct inquiries on the matter.

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