By Flavia Ajok
Three family members, including a mother and her two children, drowned over the weekend after slipping into an abandoned road construction excavation pit in Masindi.
The deceased have been identified as 30-year-old Grace Abwongi, and her children, 12-year-old Lilian Ikoru and 2-year-old Muzamil Alinaitwe, all residents of Nyabigoma village in Karongo parish, Budongo sub-county.
The incident occurred on Saturday evening around 7 p.m. as the family gathered water from the pit. According to information obtained by Spice FM, the three slipped into the water as they attempted to draw it from the excavation site.
Yasin Kitasoboka, the family head, recounted that he returned home from work around 8 p.m. to find that his wife and children were not at home. Initially, he assumed they had gone for night prayers, as his wife, a devout Born-Again Christian, frequently attended overnight services.
The discovery came the following morning when Kitasoboka went to the same pit to fetch water and found the bodies of his wife and children floating. He immediately raised an alarm, attracting residents who rushed to the scene.
Julius Kyahurwa, the Budongo Sub-county Local Council (LC3) Chairperson, expressed his condolences over the incident and urged residents to avoid using the excavation pit for water, especially children, citing the inherent dangers.
Julius Hakiza, the Albertine region police spokesperson, said that police responded promptly to the scene and, with the assistance of locals, retrieved the bodies from the pit.
