A South Sudanese baby girl drowns in a rubbish pit in Arua
Members of the South Sudanese community in Arua are mourning the death of a toddler who fell and drowned in a rubbish pit in Marache cell, River Oli division in Arua town, Uganda.
Members of the South Sudanese community in Arua are mourning the death of a toddler who fell and drowned in a rubbish pit in Marache cell, River Oli division in Arua town, Uganda
The deceased is daughter to Nakumuko Modi, a South Sudanese student from Yambio Western Equatoria who owing to conflict and insecurity back home came to Uganda in 2016 to pursue education.
It is believed that the little girl was sent by her mother on Sunday afternoon to go and dispose of rubbish. Unfortunately, she fell into the pit which was filled with water following the recent heavy downpour in the region.
The body was retrieved and taken to the relatives of the mother in Ongafu cell Arua hill division for burial. Early last year, 2019, a similar incident occurred when another South Sudanese child drowned in sewage in Arua city
This incident has made the area leaders conduct home to home inspection to ensure the safety of the residence.
David Juma the LC 1 chairperson of the Marache cell in the Ayiva division said that they are set to come up with some measures that can help protect children from such accidents in the future. He explained that when digging pits for dumping rubbish, it is important to have some fence around it to prevent someone from accidentally falling into the pit.
David urged mothers to be more cautious especially about leaving young children alone at home when going to the market or running some errands and make sure that the children are left in the care of an adult who can watch over them.
Speaking at the burial of the little girl, Mr. Solomon Oda, the LC 1 chairperson of Arua hill cell urged residents to be more vigilant about protecting their young children, especially during the rainy season.
“Many mothers oftentimes leave their babies to play in the rainwater not knowing that the heavy running water can carry away the babies,’’ Solomon pointed out as he also urged the community to ensure that the standard measures put in place to be observed with regards to prevention of Covid-19 must be adhered to.
“You have to consider social distance, wearing of face mask and washing of hands in every burial of the South Sudanese communities as this is the only way to protect ourselves and our families from contracting the deadly Coronavirus,” he advised.
By Gaaniko Samson Jerry
