A water shortage continues to hit Gulu hard following the drying up of Oyitino dam from which the town pumps its drinking water.
The drying up of the dam has been blamed on the prolonged drought, leaving over 300,000 residents of Gulu town to scramble for alternative sources of water other than the primary source from the National Water and Sewage Corporation (NWSC).
Gulu town consumes 2.4 million liters of water every day, according to Paul Rackara, the Gulu branch manager of the NWSC.
Rackara says, the water shortage, has also seen the water reservoir at Oyitino dry up for the first time in the last 23 years.
The dam at Oyitino began drying early this year, according to the NWSC, killing all the fish in the dam.
“The fish have died because the water level has gone so down. Since last week we have been using the local people to remove the dead fish from our dam because they contaminate the place,’’ said Rackara.
“It [the dam] used to be at 4.65 meters and now we have no water at all. The whole place is muddy and no water in the tanks,” added Rachkara.
Residents of Gulu town have expressed worry about the water shortage. At water point located at Goans quarters in Bardege division, residents line up to fetch water.
Molly Akello, one of the women at the well told Acholi Times said her children have not been going to school because they have to help with fetching water.
Deo Otunu, the defense secretary of Goans quarters in Gulu town said the water crisis has led to security concerns, pointing at a recent incident in which a lady identified only as Lanyero was allegedly gang-raped by five men as she went to collect water at 5am.
“The shortage in Gulu will cause a lot of problem if not resolved. A lady was raped by 5 men here at the well as she was coming to fetch water at night”, Otunu says.
One of the five suspects in the rape has since been arrested, according to Otunnu.
Gulu Resident District Commissioner, Capt Santos Okot Lapolo has meanwhile called on weapon to move in groups when going to collect water very early in the morning.
“Let them move in groups. Let them move in a group because it becomes difficult to cause problems to a group than when it is one woman.”
Martin Ojara Mapenduzi, the Gulu district Chairman told Acholi Times that it was resolved during a meeting of different stakeholders in Gulu including National Water and Sewage Corporation and the district leadership that water be pumped from the nearby Oyitino river to Oyitino dam.
The army and the prisons have reportedly expressed interest in helping dig a trench for a pipe that will pump water from the river to the dam.
1 Comment
Which one is more safe? pump the water from a river to a stinking damp? Why not connect a pump into the river; protect the river source area from contamination and see how it can supply the district direct. Lots of bottle water is taken directly from small sources are rocks. The dump itself is now contaminated with dead fish and other things which require cleaning. Option 2, locate all the rivers that have not dried up, protect the sources from outside contamination, connect pipes to supply larger areas.