Lubowa , Uganda – A two-year-old boy has been rescued by Ugandan police after being trapped in a pit latrine for hours. The dramatic rescue took place in the town of Lubowa on Saturday afternoon, with police responding to a distress call from concerned residents.
After Mr. Michael Mukooza, a resident of Lubowa, reported to police that his neighbor’s son had fallen into a pit latrine, Simon Mukisa was fortunately evacuated safely.
The boy had been stuck in the pit toilet for several hours when police arrived immediately and worked nonstop to free him. The cops were able to safely remove the toddler from the pit latrine and reconnect him with his mother thanks to the assistance of neighborhood people.
“Upon receiving the report, a team of police officers from Lubowa Police Station, led by the O/C Station, immediately responded to the scene along with a team of fire prevention and rescue services. Upon arrival, they found the child stuck in the pit latrine and in urgent need of rescue,” Mr Luke Oweyesigyire, the deputy Kampala Metropolitan police spokesperson said in statement.
The young child was rushed right away to a local hospital for treatment and was described as being in stable condition. Since then, the authorities have opened an investigation into the event and issued a public request for any information that could provide details on how the child came to be in the pit commode.
“The police and fire prevention and rescue team quickly devised a rescue plan and managed to pull the child out of the pit latrine safely. The child was alive but required urgent medical attention. The team rushed the child to Kiruddu Hospital for treatment,” he said, adding that police would work with relevant authorities to ensure that such incidents are prevented in the future.
The tragedy has made it clear that there is a need for more education and safety measures when it comes to pit latrine use. Pit latrines are a typical sight in many Ugandan communities and provide a serious risk to young children who can inadvertently fall in.
Local officials and community members have demanded increased efforts to promote pit latrine safety and stop similar accidents from happening in the future in response to the incident. They also praised the cops for acting quickly to free the toddler who was trapped.
There is a fresh emphasis on the significance of alertness and safety measures in preventing accidents and catastrophes involving pit latrines as the community comes to grips with this horrific episode.