The police, rescuers, and local divers have recovered three bodies from River Rwizi during the ongoing search for those who drowned earlier this week. Two of the retrieved bodies are yet to be identified. On Monday around 7:30 pm, a canoe carrying four people capsized in the river, resulting in the deaths of three occupants.
The deceased were identified as Rukundo Amutuhaire, a 19-year-old senior five student of Five-star High School Ntungamo and resident of Nyakaizi village, Timothy Kakuru, a 23-year-old second-year medical lab student at Mbarara University of Science and Technology and resident of Karugangama cell, and Lozio alias Rastaman, the owner of the canoe. Willy Musa, a 33-year-old resident of Nyakaizi, was the sole survivor.
The search efforts were boosted by a team of marines, led by Sgt Alyasi Wakadala from the Fire and Rescue Services in Kampala, who arrived at the scene Wednesday to assist in finding the missing people.
So far, the team has only managed to retrieve three people, one of whom was Timothy Kakuru. The other two people are yet to be identified, and the search has covered a distance of more than 5 meters. Samson Kasasira, the Rwizi Regional police spokesperson, confirms that the marine team and locals have retrieved some bodies and taken them to Mbarara Referral Hospital.
The retrieved bodies that are not identified are suspected to have drowned when the river was flooded, and the search is still ongoing.
Imran Twebaze, one of the rescuers, says that since the start of this month, they have retrieved 10 bodies that are not known in the area.
Duncan Bogerera, a resident of Karugangama, says that since they moved in to recover their beloved ones, many unidentified bodies have been discovered, warning that leaders should step in and save the situation.
Moses Kajubi, a ward councilor, says that since the Kanyeyite bridge broke down, residents have been left stranded, and others have resorted to using a long route of about 5 Km to get to town and are no longer conducting business normally.
