By Philip Wasswa
There was panic yesterday at around 5:02 pm, when a boat, MV Vanessa that was heading to Water Front Beach Entebbe got stuck on Lake Victoria.
One of the passengers made a distress call to the Police Marine Unit that responded swiftly to save the situation.
According to the caller, the which they had boarded from Lutoboka, Kalangala District heading to Water Front Beach Entebbe, got stuck on the lake and none of those on board could identify what the problem was.
"Our Police Marine Unit responded to a distress call from Lake Victoria. According to the caller, a boat, MV Vanessa, which they had boarded from Lutoboka, Kalangala District heading to Water Front Beach Entebbe, got stuck on the lake," Deputy Kampala Metropolitan Police Spokesman Luke Owoyesigire said in a statement.
"The passengers were scared of what could happen next," he added.
The incident comes a year after MV Templar capsized on Lake Victoria about 500 metres away at Mutima beach in Mukono district. The boat, which was carrying nearly 100 revelers heading to an afternoon of partying capsized after developing mechanical problems and 31 people lost their lives.
In the latest scare, Police responded and later got to know that it was not a mechanical issue that had made the boat to fail, but they had run out of fuel.
"The boat management was sending fuel and the rescue team arrived at 5:17 pm with fuel which enabled them to sail again to Entebbe. We have summoned the boat captain to record statements upon what exactly happened and why he had opted to set sail without enough fuel," Oweyesigyire said adding that, "Our officers in the Police Marine unit have also confirmed that all the occupants of the boat arrived safely at their destination and theirs is no cause of alarm, however, we appeal to the public to always inform our Police Marine Unit whenever such issues happen on our toll-free line 0800 300113."
Last month, the Uganda Police announced that it would offer Ugandans free swimming lessons to help them in case of emergencies that might require swimming capabilities.
According to police and survivors of the MV Templar, many of those who perished in the water tragedy didn’t know how to swim.
After the tragedy, the Ministry of Works and Transport embarked on a campaign to regulate water transport by registering all boats, ascertaining their safety to passengers and their water transport worthiness.
