Paul Ochen, Grade 11
UWCEA (Arusha)
Paul Ochen, on the extent to which tropical floods have ravaged his home country Uganda, and how this catastrophe could be fought.
Because of heavy rain, multiple floods occurred in Kween District (central-east Uganda) on 9 May, after Sundet and Kere Rivers burst their banks. Three people died and several others sustained injuries. Several homes have been lost, and over 200 families need relief help. The Uganda Red Cross Society and local authorities are carrying out surveys of flood damage and casualties, wind devastation and the landslides that occurred in the lower plains of Girigiri.
Flash floods in Kasese District (South West Uganda) tend to affect the local population. The Nyamwamba, Mubuku, Nyamughasana and Lhubiriha rivers burst their banks again, flooding the villages and displacing over 100,000 residents. In Kabale District (southwest Uganda), rain caused havoc and the major highway to Rwanda collapsed causing all traffic to be diverted through Nyamitanga hills. The Prime Minister's Office provides in-kind food; however, further assistance is required.
On 1 July, at least nine people were feared dead after floods and mudslides on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) yet again hit parts of Kasese District. Traffic between Uganda and DRC was also cut off after River Thaku, which divides the two countries, submerged the main bridge. The river spilled through its banks and forced hundreds of people to run for their lives.
In Busia District (east Uganda), at least 500 families are displaced and in desperate need of food and shelter Throughout south-western Uganda, people living throughout Kasese district close to the rivers of Nyamwamba, Mubuku, and Nyamugasa are threatened by floodwaters and have been forced to evacuate. Bundibugyo and Ntoroko Districts are also affected. Several homes, roads and bridges were swamped with confirmed power outages. About 800 are displaced. Police and the Army were deployed by the government to perform rescue tasks. The availability of immediate food remains a problem because of the limitations on access.
Solutions are desperately needed because of the widespread damage caused by these devastating floods. Rainfall harvesting is, in my view, the most feasible choice possible. Rainwater can be drained from building roofs into tanks for sanitary use or from soaking pits for reuse of ground water. It might be difficult to understand how a few buckets of rainwater from one roof will relieve the flooding situation in the districts of Kasese and Busia: it's worth a try, though. Harvesting rainwater is about the numbers. Imagine this; if all homes, malls, schools, and hospitals in a district began collecting rainwater, the total amount of water entering the streets at the same time would be drastically decreased, thus decreasing the average water flow rate. In consequence, one is reducing the potential for most floods. Hence low-cost gutters must be made available and applied in construction.
Similarly, compound paving should be converted to hollow pavers using solid pavers or tarmac to allow natural infiltration at homes and commercial buildings. For example, in Germany, city authorities charge property owners for every square meter of hard surface in one's compound to minimize rainwater flowing down the streets from these properties.
For another workable option, I find that the National Environment Management Authority needs to build more green zones or collaborate with existing ones such as the City Golf Club and Kyadondo Rugby Grounds to redesign these areas for harvesting or to serve as temporary floodwater control basins during peak rains; these forms of extreme flooding are assumed to have a return period of five to ten years, meaning that damage to these grounds may be negligible if the grounds were used.
Third, I agree that improved garbage management and regulation of the amount of sand from construction sites entering the drainage channels is extremely necessary in Uganda's attempt to prevent flooding. Such systems are blocking and stopping storm water. The logical alternative would be to demolish all wetland buildings but, as we all know, that is almost impossible because of the complexities of power-money involved. So win-win approaches that don't automatically require major investments or house destruction are the best bet on reducing the flooding situation in such a complex socio-economic and ecologically challenged country as Uganda.
Noting the disasters that frequent floods have caused in my home country of Uganda, I firmly believe that government authorities should adopt the aforementioned solutions immediately to prevent the loss of more lives and the displacement of many others.
Because of heavy rain, multiple floods occurred in Kween District (central-east Uganda) on 9 May, after Sundet and Kere Rivers burst their banks. Three people died and several others sustained injuries. Several homes have been lost, and over 200 families need relief help. The Uganda Red Cross Society and local authorities are carrying out surveys of flood damage and casualties, wind devastation and the landslides that occurred in the lower plains of Girigiri.
Flash floods in Kasese District (South West Uganda) tend to affect the local population. The Nyamwamba, Mubuku, Nyamughasana and Lhubiriha rivers burst their banks again, flooding the villages and displacing over 100,000 residents. In Kabale District (southwest Uganda), rain caused havoc and the major highway to Rwanda collapsed causing all traffic to be diverted through Nyamitanga hills. The Prime Minister's Office provides in-kind food; however, further assistance is required.
On 1 July, at least nine people were feared dead after floods and mudslides on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) yet again hit parts of Kasese District. Traffic between Uganda and DRC was also cut off after River Thaku, which divides the two countries, submerged the main bridge. The river spilled through its banks and forced hundreds of people to run for their lives.
In Busia District (east Uganda), at least 500 families are displaced and in desperate need of food and shelter Throughout south-western Uganda, people living throughout Kasese district close to the rivers of Nyamwamba, Mubuku, and Nyamugasa are threatened by floodwaters and have been forced to evacuate. Bundibugyo and Ntoroko Districts are also affected. Several homes, roads and bridges were swamped with confirmed power outages. About 800 are displaced. Police and the Army were deployed by the government to perform rescue tasks. The availability of immediate food remains a problem because of the limitations on access.
Solutions are desperately needed because of the widespread damage caused by these devastating floods. Rainfall harvesting is, in my view, the most feasible choice possible. Rainwater can be drained from building roofs into tanks for sanitary use or from soaking pits for reuse of ground water. It might be difficult to understand how a few buckets of rainwater from one roof will relieve the flooding situation in the districts of Kasese and Busia: it's worth a try, though. Harvesting rainwater is about the numbers. Imagine this; if all homes, malls, schools, and hospitals in a district began collecting rainwater, the total amount of water entering the streets at the same time would be drastically decreased, thus decreasing the average water flow rate. In consequence, one is reducing the potential for most floods. Hence low-cost gutters must be made available and applied in construction.
Similarly, compound paving should be converted to hollow pavers using solid pavers or tarmac to allow natural infiltration at homes and commercial buildings. For example, in Germany, city authorities charge property owners for every square meter of hard surface in one's compound to minimize rainwater flowing down the streets from these properties.
For another workable option, I find that the National Environment Management Authority needs to build more green zones or collaborate with existing ones such as the City Golf Club and Kyadondo Rugby Grounds to redesign these areas for harvesting or to serve as temporary floodwater control basins during peak rains; these forms of extreme flooding are assumed to have a return period of five to ten years, meaning that damage to these grounds may be negligible if the grounds were used.
Third, I agree that improved garbage management and regulation of the amount of sand from construction sites entering the drainage channels is extremely necessary in Uganda's attempt to prevent flooding. Such systems are blocking and stopping storm water. The logical alternative would be to demolish all wetland buildings but, as we all know, that is almost impossible because of the complexities of power-money involved. So win-win approaches that don't automatically require major investments or house destruction are the best bet on reducing the flooding situation in such a complex socio-economic and ecologically challenged country as Uganda.
Noting the disasters that frequent floods have caused in my home country of Uganda, I firmly believe that government authorities should adopt the aforementioned solutions immediately to prevent the loss of more lives and the displacement of many others.
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