Heavy rains and strong winds caused havoc in Amagoro, Teso North Sub county, destroying property and crops and left over 20 people homeless on Saturday night.
The rains which began at about 7:00 pm caught many people by surprise forcing them to run for their dear lives.
Houses were destroyed, trees uprooted, and roofs blown away while householders calculated their losses.
By morning, scenes of ruin lay scattered as the residents tried to salvage what remained of their belongings.
One of the worst cases was of one Vincent Emusolo, whose roof was completely torn away by the furious winds. Since his main house was no longer inhabitable, Emusolo reveals that he is now seeking shelter in his small kitchen.
“I have nowhere to go. My rooftop was blown away and I am now living in the kitchen, but the space is too small for my family,” Emusolo described with a despairing voice.
Lydia Osere, also an Amagoro resident, lamented that the storm demolished her kitchen and trees fell on her farm, injuring her livestock.
For Deborah Okamimu, the long night was led by fear and hopelessness. She narrated that the storm destroyed her farm crops, and her livestock were scattered.
“Our crops have been destroyed, our animals injured, and our homes are damaged. This is a big setback to our families,” lamented Deborah.
The residents of Amagoro are now appealing to local leaders and the national government to intervene in the rehabilitation of their disrupted livelihood. Most of them claim to be freezing under cold nights due to lack of shelter, and if the matter of concern is not solved quickly, it would bring forth water-borne and cold-related diseases.
“We appeal to our leaders to provide us with building materials and support for the restoration of our houses. If they do not intervene, many families will continue to suffer,” said Okamimu.
Amagoro residents led by John Karani were thankful that no one was killed in the incident considering everything was destroyed.
Karani warned that the livelihoods and lives of the people were greatly endangered by the constant reoccurrence of such disasters.
“As much as we are pleased that at least no one got injured, we are concerned that such events are risky and can quickly turn fatal. There is no doubt that action must be taken swiftly in order to stop such events happening in the near future,” added Karani.
By Sunday morning, families were still counting their losses, with debris of bent iron sheets, broken branches, and collapsed structures scattered across villages in Amagoro.
The affected residents have urged the relevant disaster response agencies to visit the area and give emergency relief as they commence the long journey of renovating their destroyed houses.
By Owen Mutai
