Kiira Region Police Marine Unit has rescued four tourists from River Nile. The four tourists were part of the revelers who turned up for the just concluded four-day Nyege-Nyege festival in Itanda falls in Butagaya sub-county in Jinja district.
The tourists were sailing on River Nile on Safe Boda boat registration number MV COMBOA 006 on Monday afternoon en route to Namasagali landing site in Kamuli district when they rammed into a rock that had been overshadowed by flash water spillovers.
The boat suffered leakages forcing the occupants to make an emergency docking at one of the abandoned islands in the river. The Boat Captain, Augustine Owori made a rescue call to the standby marine police unit stationed at Itanda falls, about 100 meters away from the accident scene.
The Unit mobilized two rescue boats and ferried the victims back to the mainland where they were safely transported to their desired location. The Kiira Regional Police Spokesperson, James Mubi, says that the tourist and the boat operator were dressed in standard life jackets, which partly contributed to their safety.
Mubi explained that much as the Nyege-Nyege festival ended on Sunday standby security teams have been dispatched to follow up on the safety of revelers throughout the course of their departure from the venue.