There was panic at the worker’s house on Monday evening forcing several people to flee for their lives. The alarm went off shortly after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions-DPP and the United Kingdom High Commissioner to Uganda Kate Airey to establish a virtual Academy for Prosecutors.
The MOU followed a request by DPP’s office to the UK government for technical assistance to design and deliver an online platform for prosecutors to build their capacity in order to effectively and efficiently manage criminal matters. However, the fire alarm went off as the officials were entertaining questions from the media forcing several people to wonder what was happening.
This prompted the Director of Public Prosecutions, Jane Frances Abodo to apologize and order whoever was in the meeting on the 12th floor to vacate using the stairs.
Security officers immediately evacuated the DPP and the UK officials via the stairs. The remaining people also vacated the 14-floor building via the stairs.
There was confusion on the stairs as people including expectant mothers and guests who had come to various offices ran for their lives and assembled in front of the building to ascertain what was going on.
However, later, a man wearing a reflector jacket branded Worker’s House Fire Marshal told the dozens of people who looked scared one of the capacitors of the fan on the ninth floor had burnt but didn’t affect anything.
Some security personnel told URN that the fire alarm was triggered by burnt wires in the Air Conditioning systems on the eleventh floor.
The security later told the people who were gathered outside to return to the building.
The fire alarm scare has come at a time when the country has registered several fire outbreaks mostly in schools and offices without any conclusive report.