It is 10 days since mudslides flattened Namesti trading centre, killing hundreds of people. Once a vibrant area, this commercial hub of Namasheti Parish, Bukalasi Sub-county, in the eastern district of Bududa, is now in ruins.

With almost all its inhabitants buried by the massive mudslides that swept the entire parish on March 1, Namesti remains largely desolate.

A few survivors regroup every morning to mourn their loved ones buried several feet underground and hope that the bodies will be recovered to be buried in family cemeteries.

But such hopes are fast fading because time is running out. Being the only trading centre on the edge of Bududa District, near Mt. Elgon National Park, Namesti was traditionally the centre of trade and social activities.

Because it brought together neighbouring communities for social evenings after a day’s hard work, nobody can tell, with certainty, how many people are buried under the mud.

Gifted with fertile soils, Namesti produces hundreds of tonnes of onions, cabbages, maize, beans, coffee and bananas annually. Because of this, the inhabitants have often defied warnings from the Uganda Wild Life Authority (UWA) to vacate the dangerously hilly area.

So, when it rained from dawn to dusk on February 30, the residents of Namesti trading centre didn’t see the rain as a harbinger of doom because they were used to heavy rains this time of the year.

There was, however, some unease as the downpour continued deep into the night. According to the LC-1 Chairman of Namesti village, Lubokhe James, the rains relaxed a bit at around 8a.m. in the morning of March 1, allowing people to start the day’s work, but at around midday, the rains started again and continued throughout the rest of day.

“People continued working amidst the rains, and at around 5 o’clock, when people are through with the day’s work, and are relaxing at the trading centre, we heard a big explosion and the next thing I saw were big stones rolling down from the mountains. I was at a distance and had to run for my life,” Lubokhe narrated.

“After around 30 minutes, the rains stopped and the next thing I heard, were people wailing. This forced me to rush to the scene and what I found was unthinkable—a lot of people were dead,” he said.

By 6p.m., Namesti was no more. The entire trading centre was submerged by the mudslides, save for only two homes that were covered only half way. Lubokhe says he made the first call that alerted the world that a catastrophe had struck Namesti.

SURVIVORS’ TALES

In addition to Red Cross and local government officials who rushed to the scene, the Ministry of Relief and Disaster Preparedness, together with the Ministry of Defence, dispatched a battalion of UPDF soldiers to help retrieve those stuck in the mud.

Only six people were pulled out alive, but two died later in Bududa Hospital. According to Lt. Col. Wilson Kabeera, the commanding officer of the UPDF forces on the ground, the force is determined to retrieve all the bodies stuck under the mud.

“We are determined to have all the bodies stuck under the mud retrieved, it is the authorities that will tell us that the area has been declared a mass grave, and then we shall leave,” he said.

By the end of last week, there was no hope of finding anybody alive and survivors of the tragedy wanted to be relocated.

“This place has a bad omen now; we can’t stay here any longer. I can’t imagine all my family members who died here. Since Monday, I am having nightmares and I just want to leave this place,” said George Kamoti, who lost his entire family of four children, including his mother and two sisters.

“I don’t know what told me to run. I wish I had remained and died with my family,” Kamoti said, before breaking down. Another man who lost everything is Bernard Koloto.

“I lost two sisters and one is in Bududa Hospital with her baby of two years old. My onions that I had just harvested worth Shs 2 million all went in a single day. What a wicked day it was—it has made me hate life. I appeal to the government to relocate us somewhere else,” he said.

Wilson Watira, the LC-5 chairman, concedes that efforts to retrieve more people, dead or alive, had reached a dead end.

“Since our people have agreed to be relocated, we are going to ask all religious leaders to pray for the souls of those who perished, otherwise we can’t do much. It is beyond our capability, we are going to put our focus and efforts on those who have survived,” Watira said.

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