Inmates at Kakuuto Government Prison have been relocated after heavy rains destroyed the prison buildings.
Julius Olaka, the Southern Region Prisons Commander, says that the heavy rains on Sunday afternoon, ripped the prison buildings of their roofs exposing the inmates to heavy rains.
Christopher Kalemba, the Kakuuto LC3 chairman says, the rains lasting two hours and accompanied by strong winds ripped the iron sheets from the prison buildings and carried them in the middle of the road.
There was a stampede as the inmates rushed outside in search for shelter but no escapes were reported.
With the roofs brought down and the inmates exposed to cold, the prison authorities were left with no option but to relocate the inmates to Mutukula government prison.
Olaka also says the matter has been brought to the attention of the Uganda Prisons Service headquarters in Kampala and he is hopeful that major repairs will be done soon.
Kakuuto government prison was constructed in 1940s and like many other prisons in Uganda, has never received a major renovation.
In Kakuto trading center, 10 families were left stranded and several acres of bananas razed down by the heavy winds. New crops were washed away by the flash floods.
Traders were equally affected. Many lkost their merchandise as the floods swelled into the buildings.
Recently, similar rainstorm destroyed several houses in the nearby Kasasa Sub County, leaving hundreds of other people homeless. The affected families are still waiting for government intervention.
Rakai district has suffered frequent storms because of its landscape.
Most of the areas vulnerable to the rains have no trees to protect communities from strong winds and storm.
