At least 20 houses have already been destroyed and others are about to collapse in Kuwinterekwa quarter in Gihosha zone of Ntahangwa commune in the northern part of Bujumbura since the past two months. Soil compaction is the cause.
Some people have started to move because their houses have already been damaged.
Destroyed houses, others half damaged, small and big ravines as well as water in small alleys are what one sees in the northern part of Bujumbura city, precisely in a quarter commonly called Kuwinterekwa. Owners of houses, most of which are newly constructed, are desperate.
Charlotte Ntihabose, a mother of five and widow, says she is left speechless. “I can’t understand what happened. I came to live here with my children four months ago. My house was new and solid. I later on started seeing cracks on the wall and they became bigger in a very short time,” she says adding that she is obliged to seek refuge at her neighbors in the night and come back day time. “I have nowhere to go. I built the house thanks to my friends’ assistance and the loan I had applied for”.
Générose Hakizimana, a thirty-year-old woman and mother of two, asks the government to help them by building gutters. “There is no channel through which all the water from hills can flow. Therefore, it creates its own ways and makes our houses collapse as it flows from every side. The government should help us by building channels,” she says.
Antoine Ntemako, Director General of the civil protection police says what’s urgent is to relocate the residents of the area. “People living in half damaged houses and houses which are about to collapse have to be evacuated to another area urgently”.
He says that the government will partner with other organizations and experts to conduct researches and see what are the motives behind this soil compaction after the concerned people have been moved.
Jean Marie Sabushimike, an environment expert and university lecturer, says the phenomenon of soil compaction is not something Burundians are familiar with.
“People in danger have to be removed first and a thorough research will follow to know what happened and what should be done”.
He however deplores the uncontrolled constructions observed in this area. “As a scientist, I cannot affirm that the cause is this or that unless I have conducted research. However, I wonder how people can build in such areas with neither gutters nor roads. Where would run-off waters be supposed to flow?”
He says there should be plans to build a city meeting standards to avoid natural catastrophes as it’s done in other countries.
This Tuesday 27March, a team composed of the staff from the Ministry of Public Works and Territorial Planning, the Civil Protection police, the Red Cross and journalists had jointly conducted a field visit to see the damages already caused by the soil compaction in Kuwinterekwa quarter.
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