Three Pupils Critically Injured After Lightning Strike in Kabale

Three pupils of Katojo Primary School in Habuhuriro Parish, Kahungye Sub-county, Kabale District, are admitted in critical condition at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital after being struck by lightning.

The victims have been identified as Gracious Ayebare, a Primary Five pupil, Mackline Desire Tukamushaba, also a Primary Five pupil and Duncan Saturday, a Primary Three pupil.

According to Ivan Willy Twikirize, a school stakeholder and LCII Chairperson of Habuhuriro Parish, the incident occurred at around 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday during a heavy downpour. He explained that teachers had delayed sending pupils home for lunch due to the rain, waiting for conditions to improve slightly.

However, as the pupils rushed home in the rain, they were struck by lightning upon reaching Katojo B Village within the same parish. Twikirize said the injured pupils were immediately rushed to Kabale Regional Referral Hospital, where they remain in critical condition. He noted that this is the first incident of its kind in the parish involving pupils.

Meanwhile, residents report that the heavy rainfall, accompanied by strong winds, caused widespread damage in the area.

Dickson Kamuhanda, a resident, said two houses belonging to Norman Mugisha and Rauben Tukwasiibwe in Kitojo Village were deroofed. Banana plantations were also destroyed by the storm.

Several districts across the Kigezi sub-region have experienced heavy rains between Tuesday and Wednesday, raising concerns over recurring weather-related disasters.

The region has a history of deadly lightning incidents. In December 2022, a 20-year-old man identified as Fere from Nyarurambi Village in Muko Sub-county, Rubanda District, was struck dead by lightning. In September 2021, Edidiya Turyatemba, 42, and Diana Kajowa, 31, both residents of Mukasyokwe Village in Kanungu District, were also killed in a similar incident.

Earlier cases include the death of Aggrey Ainembabazi, a pupil of Nyakeina Parents Primary School, who was struck dead in April 2018, while seven others survived with injuries. In the same month, a woman and her daughter were struck by lightning in Karangara Parish, Kabale District.

More recently, in March 2023, Ambrose Kanunu, 35, and his two sons, Justus Asiimwe, 7, and Arnold Habomugisha, 5, both pupils of Bwindi Primary School in Rubanda District, were killed by lightning. In June 2025, Moses Kenaama, 69, and Faith Bushambire, 73, were struck and injured in Rubaya Sub-county, Kabale District. The Kigezi sub-region remains one of the most lightning-prone areas in Uganda, according to the 2021 National Risk and Vulnerability Atlas.