Three die in pit latrine accident

NYAMAGABE - Residents of Kivuruga village, Gasarenda cell in Nyamagabe District are mourning the death of three young men who died Wednesday evening in an unfinished pit latrine.

Saturday, June 16, 2012

NYAMAGABE - Residents of Kivuruga village, Gasarenda cell in Nyamagabe District are mourning the death of three young men who died Wednesday evening in an unfinished pit latrine.The deceased were identified as Alphonse Hakizimana, 9, Eric Niyigena, 20, and Vedaste Rubanguka, 27.Another, Andre Ntibisama, 35, survived the incident but was admitted at Kigeme Health Centre before being discharged early on Thursday.Witness accounts indicate that 9-year old Hakizimana accidentally dropped his shoes into the approximately 8.5m long pit and climbed down into it in an attempt to retrieve them. He was thereafter followed by the other victims who, the same way, attempted to save each other, but in vain.It is suspected that the trio died of suffocation.He appealed for people constructing latrines to always cover the pits to avoid similar accidents.