2023-08-20 17:39:27
Gaston Mutamba Permission
On the evening of August 16, a fire broke out in the annexes of Camp Lufungula, a barracks of the Congolese national police located in the commune of Lingwala. Hell and damnation! This camp was built in 1934. It is overcrowded today. It was the largest police garrison at the time of Belgian colonization. For those who do not know, the commune of Lingwala, so called since 1971, derives its origin from the name of Lingwal, chief of the Humbu tribe, who died in 1923. He was buried in his village south of the current commune of Bandalungwa . Anyway next!
Fortunately, no loss of life was reported as a result of this fire at Camp Lufungula. The fire caught easily as they were houses made of odds and ends. It looked like a remake of the Great Fire of London of September 5, 1666 or the Great Fire of Rome of July 18, 64 “generated and not created” by Nero. In either case, the houses were built of wood. According to witnesses, the fire in the police camp was caused by a short circuit caused by fraudulent connections. This is called in local language « bibenda ya courant ». Nearly 100 houses were burned. Stupor and tremors!
According to my friend who knows what is happening in all the nooks and crannies of dilapidated Kinshasa, to cope with frequent power cuts and load shedding, it is practical to connect to several power lines at the same time thanks to to manual inverters. Saperlipopette! So when a line lacks current, we connect to the other which is powered. But when the insulation of the wires is damaged or defective, it can create an electric arc when the electric current is restored in the two lines. The energy released during the electric arc causes the fire. This is how the fire broke out in the annex part of the camp which is illegally occupied by people who have nothing to do with the police. Holy shit!
It was therefore not only police officers who lived in these makeshift houses built of wood, sheet metal and cardboard. There were also true-false squatters. It is important not to believe that a quidam can come and settle illegally in a police camp. Nay! It’s a business of money. The chiefs of the camps generally demand rent from these poor wretches. The great advantage of living in these perimeters is that you do not pay for water or electricity. According to the law, the official authorities do not pay for water and electricity consumption in our country coveted by all the neighboring countries and China. So we use it galore. What shouldn’t happen, happened. A short circuit caused the fire. Hell and damnation!
As always, the brave city firefighters arrived late. There are no common fire hydrants. The firefighters have to bring the water in the only existing tanker and make several round trips. Everything was consumed! Hell and damnation! A few years ago, the fire station burned down, along with the trucks that were there. Stupor and tremors!
Several neighborhoods in Kinshasa are facing a shortage of running water. In these corners, the population draws water from boreholes, rivers and near springs. The firefighters found a way to make money, to do juicy business. It was like the egg of Christopher Columbus, you had to think about it. They therefore engaged in a lucrative business by filling their truck with water which they were then going to resell. What shouldn’t happen, happened. One night the barracks caught fire. But the cisterns were desperately empty after the day’s fruitful business. There was not enough water to put out the fire. Everything went up in smoke! Isn’t it said that shoemakers are always the worst shod? Hell and damnation!
We say at home that sometimes the night lasts a long time, but the day always ends up arriving.
GML
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#Fire #Lufungula #police #camp #Independent #Congo