Police in Zombo district have arrested an electrician for abandoning a pithole latrine that killed two of his neighbor’s children after a heavy downpour.
Josephine Angucia, the police spokesperson for West Nile Region Police, stated that the man who is facing charges of causing two deaths by a rash and neglect act is identified as Francis Omirambe, aged 32, a resident of Alisithungu cell, Dwonga ward, Paidha Town Council, Zombo District.
Omirambe was arrested on April 5, 2024, for the tragic deaths of two children, aged one and two, who drowned in a pit that was filled with rainwater on April 3, 2024, at around 12:00 p.m.
According to Angucia, police received a call from the area local chairman of the Alisithungu cell, who reported that two children aged one and two had drowned in a pit hole after a heavy rain fall that lasted hours.
It was discovered that the two female juveniles, Ocandi Asinata, a one-year-old daughter of Sarah Nyamutono, and Vion Tamara, and a two-year-old daughter of another neighbor named Christine Mandawun, both residents of Alisithungu cell, died in Omirambe’s pit.
“The two kids who lived within the same compound, after a heavy downpour, were found drowned in a pit, and it’s their neighbor who alerted the area chairman, who in turn reported to police for further management,” said Angucia.
She further added that a police rescue team was dispatched to the scene and retrieved the bodies, which were delivered to Paidha Health Centre III mortuary for a post-mortem.
According to investigations, the suspect excavated the trench and left it exposed, posing a risk to the public. As a result of the heavy rain, the hole filled with water, and the deceased children drowned to death when their parents left them unattended.
The police spokesperson advised the general public not to leave pits dug around home yards for construction open, especially in this rainy season, because they should cover them properly to prevent children and family members from falling in them and drowning to death.