Two people have been confirmed dead after being buried alive following a sand collapse at a quarry in Kanyamisinga village, Nyakashojwa Parish, Katete Sub-county, in Kanungu District. The incident occurred on Sunday at around 10:00am.
According to the Kanungu Deputy Resident District Commissioner, Baddie Rugaaju Ahimbisibwe, the accident happened when an Isuzu Tipper truck, registration number UBQ 884U, driven by Mbonigaba, went to the quarry to load sand.
Ahimbisibwe said that as sand was being loaded, a huge quantity collapsed from the top, covering the truck and the people who were loading it. The Kigezi Regional Police Spokesperson, Elly Maate, said that as a result, Mbonigaba and another man who was loading sand were buried alive.
Maate added that another man who was loading sand managed to escape unhurt. He further said that by Sunday night, only Mbonigaba’s body had been retrieved. Maate said police have since deployed a wheel loader from the UPDF Engineering Brigade to assist in retrieving the remaining missing body and the buried motor vehicle.
According to police records, about 18 people have been buried alive at the quarry in the more than 20 years it has been in operation. Ahimbisibwe said that despite district security authorities putting in place precautionary measures to mitigate the risk, locals continued to defy the guidelines and expose themselves to danger. The second body and the truck were still missing by the time of filing this story.
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