News
Namayingo residents raise alarm over hippo attacks
LC1 chairperson Robert Siida identified the deceased as Patrick Bwire, 25, while the survivor, Shakiru Mugosi, sustained injuries and is still receiving treatment.
The attack happened on November 9, 2026, at around 6:00 pm as the fishermen were out fishing. (File photo)
By: Betty Angatai, Journalist @New Vision
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Residents of Businoho landing site in Banda subcounty, Namayingo district, have raised concerns over increasing threats posed by hippopotamuses after one fisherman was killed and another injured in an attack on Lake Victoria.
The attack happened on November 9, 2026, at around 6:00 pm as the fishermen were out fishing.
LC1 chairperson Robert Siida identified the deceased as Patrick Bwire, 25, while the survivor, Shakiru Mugosi, sustained injuries and is still receiving treatment.
"After fishing for about two hours, we were preparing to leave when a hippopotamus hit our boat. This threw me into the air before the animal caught me and partly swallowed me up to the chest," Mugosi recounted.
He said they screamed for help, hoping nearby people would come to their rescue, but no one responded immediately.
"My friend tried to rescue me using an oar and the hippopotamus released me. It then turned on him, attacked him and hit our boat again, causing it to capsize," he said.
He added that when the animal attacked his colleague, he tried to swim away to save his life but sustained injuries to his back and waist.
"As I struggled towards the shore, some residents arrived in another boat and rescued me just as I was about to reach the lakeshore," Mugosi said.
He said they screamed for help, hoping nearby people would come to their rescue, but no one responded immediately.
"My friend tried to rescue me using an oar and the hippopotamus released me. It then turned on him, attacked him and hit our boat again, causing it to capsize," he said.
He added that when the animal attacked his colleague, he tried to swim away to save his life but sustained injuries to his back and waist.
"As I struggled towards the shore, some residents arrived in another boat and rescued me just as I was about to reach the lakeshore," Mugosi said.
Siida said at least five people had been killed in hippopotamus attacks in the area in the past three months, with three deaths in Businoho and two others at the neighbouring Lugala landing site.
Bwire is survived by two wives and three children.
In a separate incident, three fishermen survived an attack on the morning of November 11, 2026, after a hippopotamus hit their boat on the Businoho side of Lake Victoria.
They were identified as Emmanuel Barasa, 25, Charles Sikuku, 30, and Moses Bwire, 27, all residents of Banda.
Residents are appealing to the Uganda Wildlife Authority to intervene and address the threat posed by the animals.
Bwire is survived by two wives and three children.
In a separate incident, three fishermen survived an attack on the morning of November 11, 2026, after a hippopotamus hit their boat on the Businoho side of Lake Victoria.
They were identified as Emmanuel Barasa, 25, Charles Sikuku, 30, and Moses Bwire, 27, all residents of Banda.
Residents are appealing to the Uganda Wildlife Authority to intervene and address the threat posed by the animals.