Health Centre overwhelmed by Uganda boat disaster

Mar 23, 2014

“I am here at the health centre and the dead bodies are lying on the floor. The centre lacks facilities. We need help,” said a health official at Ntoroko Health Center III after the boat disaster.

By John Odyek

“I am here at the health centre and the dead bodies are lying on the floor. The centre lacks facilities. We need help,” were the words of Jenniffer Mujungu, a health official at Ntoroko Health Center III after the Lake Albert boat disaster on Saturday.

Up to 60 are feared dead.

Mujungu told New Vision on phone that she had 15 bodies of children and five bodies of adults lying on her floor at Ntoroko Health Center III.

Yosiah Masereke, a medical officer in charge of Ntoroko Health Centre III confirmed that the 15 dead children included 14 who were under five years of age.

The four adults comprised of three old women who were above forty years and one man above 60 years.

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BBC map showing Lake Albert (left)

“We have called the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to support, the centre is very far and so we are waiting for them. The National Medical Stores has not supplied us with formalin. The stock we had got finished,” Masereke said.

He added that they could get the formalin from Fort Portal Referral Hospital but it was too far.

He said the center lacked a mortuary. “This center is serving beyond its capacity. We handle many cases. It is like a Health Center IV. By the protocol of the center III we do have a doctor,” he said

Not only did they lack formalin to treat the bodies, but did not have stretchers to move the bodies from the lake side. There is also no burial ground in the area because it is a fishing village surrounded by a national park.

“These were refugees coming from Kyangwale Refugee Settlement Camp in Hoima district. The boat capsized near Kitebi landing site between 8.00am to 9.00am on Saturday morning,” Mujungu confirmed earlier.

Mujungu said the refugees were impatient to return home because of the relative peace in Congo and did not want to wait for road transport provided by government and UN agencies.


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