Fire has gutted the Busitema University Nagongera campus computer laboratory. The fire is said to have broken out at around 3pm on Sunday burning several computers and science equipment.
The Senior Advancement Officer, Busitema University Eriya Ntaga, says they suspect the fire could have started from faulty equipment in the server room where they had identified some failures and were in the process of addressing the problem.
He says the university had just secured 70 computers and projectors that were due for Commissioning. "The burnt equipment had just been purchased with computer accessories that the University had procured as component under the '' Higher Education Science and Technology [HEST], a government project through support from African Development Bank intended to retool Universities to boost science and computer teaching." Ntaga said.
According to Ntaga, they could have detected the fire early enough, but since it was a weekend most of the staff members and students were away. "Some students rushed to help but even the few parts of computers rescued had already melted by virtue of being plastic," he said.
He says they tried to get help from the police fire brigade but the fire engine arrived two hours later when everything had been reduced to ashes.
Dr. Edward Andama, the Dean faculty of Science and Education Nagongera Campus, says they tried their level best but couldn't save anything. He says the damage is likely to affect the teaching of computer science if the situation isn't accorded urgent attention.
Busitema university Nangongera campus is the home of faculty of science education and its one of the public universities in Uganda.