Rains cut main road to Rwanda

Destruction from the current torrential rains sweeping the region have now added another victim to its growing count, when reports reached from Kabale that the main road to the Katuna border post with Rwanda was cut off, following the opening of a major gap and washout.

Thankfully, no one came to harm as traffic was stopped early when the first signs of damage to the road were spotted, and the police then halted all heavy traffic on the affected sections to avoid accidents while monitoring carefully those sections were saloon cars were still permitted to pass.

Road building equipment was moved on to the site swiftly from Kabale, and heavy goods traffic is expected to resume within days, unless further rains bring the work to a halt or cause added damage.

The road is the key traffic axis between Rwanda and Uganda, also used for cargo traffic then moving on to Burundi or Eastern Congo, and of vital importance.

Presently, such traffic is being diverted in Ntungamo via another border post at Mirima Hills to at least permit urgent transit cargo to reach its destination, but as that road is not nearly as good as the main tarmac highway, delays are expected for travelers to and from Rwanda as busses are also using this detour.

Since the event last week, the road has been made passable once again, although added work is expected to be carried out on culverts and road-side drains to avoid a repeat of the washout.