UGANDA, Kalangala | Real Muloodi News | Fire has destroyed the centrepiece and most distinctive structure of Kalangala’s most lavish hotel, Brovad Sands Lodge.
The structure was the first to be built in Kalangala Town Council’s beautiful eco-tourism complex.
The fire broke out on Tuesday this week at 10:20 p.m., through the grass thatched rooftop, according to first responders Ibrahim Ssenyonga and Samuel Kwesiga. Electricity sparks are said to have ignited it.
“I reached there with police and another responder Samuel Kwesiga. Fire started from the ceiling between the restaurant and the bar. The lady acting as an accountant had to make a distress call. She was also inside,” Ssenyonga says.
Although the police, led by the Community Liaison Officer, arrived on time, neither the police nor Brovad had any fire fighting equipment.
According to the first responders, the fire had to be extinguished by either breaking down the building or using sand or water. However, no water trucks were available to put out the fire right away.
Eric Bukulu, the facility’s assistant manager, said the razed building contained a bar, restaurant, kitchen, and football hall. The fire burnt the entire building to ashes.
“We don’t have any firefighting equipment, yet the building contained gas cylinders that fuelled more flames that destroyed everything,” Bukulu added.
Despite the destruction of property worth millions of shillings, luckily no one was injured. Even though the restaurant and bar were utterly destroyed, the cottages remained intact.
Baluku said they saw fire in the ceiling of the building, leading them to suspect a possible fault in the electrical wiring might have caused a short circuit, setting off the blaze.
The hotel’s management was not available for any comments.
This is not the first time fire has struck Kalangala this year. In February 2022, fire gutted houses in Kalangala village, destroying property worth millions as people looked on due to the lack of firefighting equipment.
James Nandu Mugoya, who leads community policing at Kalangala Central Police Station says Kalangala has no fire brigade, making it difficult for the Police to put out any fire.
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