MUHANGA- The water supply in Muhanga District has been disrupted following the accident of a tanker transporting fuel to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

A Somali national travelling in  vehicle, identified as Abdi Saleh Jesse, 25, died when the fuel tanker overturned at Rugeramigozi marshlands in Nyamabuye Sector, Muhanga District.

The accident led to an oil spill, as tonnes of diesel flowed into the nearby rice farms, contaminating the EWSA water sources at the Gifumba water station.

According to sector officials, water supply in Gitarama town would be affected for at least three days, due to the accident.

"We have received an alert from EWSA, and we advise residents to be patient, to use other sources of water, as the problem is being sorted out,” a sector official, Jean Baptiste Mugunga, said on Sunday.

Rugeramigozi rice farmers fear that their harvest could be affected as the diesel continues to spill over 200 hectors of rice farms.

"The damage caused by the diesel has not been determined, but some farmers say that it might take years for the clean up,” Mugunga said Jesse was buried at the Muhanga District cemetery, with the help of the Muslim community and some Somali truck drivers who were part of the convoy.

Police said that over speeding was the probable cause of the accident.On Sunday evening, a Rwanda Defense Forces (RDF) rescue team, managed to remove the trailer from the rice farmlands, after the accident had blocked traffic on the Huye-Kigali highway.

Residents were seen scooping diesel as it flowed into the water sources. However, security officials managed to disperse them.

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