The Uganda Police under the traffic police have urged the public to stay cautious from lightning strikes caused by heavy rain showers following several tragic incidents that claimed the lives of humans and severe injuries sustained.

Speaking at the weekly security briefing on November 4, 2024, at Naguru police headquarters, the Police Spokesperson, ACP Kituuma Rusoke, issued a warning to the public to stay away from open, grounded areas like play grounds, incomplete buildings, and lakes for those who do fishing, as they are all at risk of downpour.

This follows an incidence that occurred at Palabek refugee camp where lightning struck, killing 13 children, including one adult, and injuring 34 others. These victims were attending a church service on Saturday evening, November 2, 2024.

The Palabek refugee settlement camp in Lamwo district, northern Uganda, is home to more than 80,000 refugees seeking asylum who are from the neighboring countries of Southern Sudan.

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Rusoke added that Ugandans should avoid tent-related structures; football players running to shelter under a pavilion and sometimes under nearby trees are prone to lightning strikes that claim lives.

He further advised the public to always stay indoors in closed premises, avoiding the need to fetch water and herding back animals from the grass yard.

Rusoke warned those with metal workshops to stay away from metal objects, such as metalwork fabricators, at the time of the downpour.

“We are asking the public to take our advice seriously to prevent deaths of our beloved ones,” Rusoke said.

In Uganda, between 2007 and 2011, lightning killed 191 people and injured 727, and these incidences are more common in districts like Gulu, Lira, Hoima, Jinja, Kalangala, and Kisoro.