Mayuge man dies in pit latrine while trying to retrieve his phone

Idi Muyimba, a 31-year-old has died in Bukatuube, Mayuge district after he suffocated inside a pit latrine while attempting to retrieve his mobile phone.

Muyimba's phone slipped and fell into the latrine pit and he resolved to manually extract it from the faecal depository. Eyewitnesses say that they waited for Muyimba to come out of the pit latrine for close to one hour in vain, prompting them to dig up the lower walls, only to find his lifeless body floating in the waste.

One of the eyewitnesses, Gaali Sikaaka says that Muyimba alerted them about the incident and they stayed on watch as he stepped into the pit latrine. Gaali says that they attempted to pull him out using ropes without success.

Busoga East police spokesperson, Diana Nandawula says that the deceased's body has been taken to Bukatuube health centre III mortuary for postmortem before they hand him to his relatives.

Nandawula argues that police has well-equipped personnel with the necessary skills required in extracting items or individuals fallen in pit latrines and she challenged members of the general public to always seek assistance from police officers attached to the fire and rescue services department for expert guidance before executing any rescue or recovery operations at such accident scenes.