Leaders worried over food supply as floods cutoff Nakapiripirit Road
Chepsukunya Bridge oalong the Muyembe-Nakapiripirit Road is seen flooded on April 30, 2024.
What you need to know:
- Leaders expressed fears that traffic disruptions come at a time when Moroto, Nabilatuk and Amudat districts did not have good food harvest last year.
Local leaders from both Amudat and Nabilatuk districts have expressed fear of a possible hike in the prices of food after flash floods Tuesday evening cut off the Chepsukunya Bridge along the Muyembe-Nakapiripirit Road, which is the main supply route for goods.
“The flash floods first cut off the Magoro-Lolachat Road which also served as the main transit route to Soroti District for business persons. The incident at Chepsukunya Bridge means Nabilatuk is completely cut off," Nabilatuk District LC5 chairperson Paul Lokol told Monitor.
In a statement, Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra) appealed to locals to use the alternative route of Mbale –Soroti –Moroto then connect to the districts of Nabilatuk, Amudat after flash floods washed away parts of the Muyembe-Nakapiripirit Road.
“All road users are urged to utilize the following alternative routes while the contractor along the Muyembe –Nakapiripirit road project intervenes to restore connectivity,” Unra said on Tuesday.
Other diversions directed by Unra as safe are Nakapiripirit –Amudat –Karita-Chepsukunya-Mbale and Nakapiripirit –Moroto-Soroti –Mbale Road.
According to Unra, a contractor is actively working to widen the water path and install culverts for improved accessibility.
The Mbale –Muyembe-Nakapiripirit Road is heavily used by business persons supplying Moroto, Nabilatuk and Amudat districts with both perishable and grain produce.
“The current disruption means added transport costs to the consuming population in Moroto Municipality,” local leaders say.
“Passing through Soroti to Moroto then connecting to Amudat could mean, one will have to part with not less than shs100, 000 in transport fare alone,” Amudat District LC5 chairperson Joseph Lobot observed.
Lokol expressed fears that the road cut off comes at a time when Moroto, Nabilatuk and Amudat districts did not have good food harvest last year.
“There is nothing we can find in Moroto. We appeal to the contractor and Unra to restore the use of the road as fast as they can,” he added.
Meanwhile, Lokol told Monitor that the flash floods also swept through several villages in Nabilatuk, forcing some people to seek refuge in trading centers and schools that were not affected by running water.
