Strange fire burns five houses in Pagwari West, Pader town council

16 September 2026, 7:22 am

By Geoffrey Okwong

Five grass-thatched houses and one bathroom have been completely burnt in a series of unexplained fires in Pagwari West Village, Pader Town Council, leaving residents distressed and raising fears within the community.

James Okot, the LC I Chairperson of Pagwari West Village, confirmed the incidents to our reporter by phone, saying the first fire broke out on September 1 at around 10am while residents were attending a meeting.

Okot said a kitchen belonging to one of his neighbours suddenly caught fire, but residents attending the meeting managed to put it out before it could cause further damage.

He said the incident left residents wondering what was happening, especially after another fire broke out in the same compound on Tuesday, September 8, when residents had gone to their gardens.

According to Okot, a bedroom house was also burnt in the second incident, further increasing fears among residents over the unexplained fires.

He said that on September 14, while he was away from the village, he received a distress call informing him that another house had caught fire in a different neighbourhood within Pagwari West.

Okot said he immediately informed other district leaders about the repeated incidents, prompting the area councillor for Acoro Parish, the Urban Council III Chairperson for Pader Town Council, police and the District Community Development Officer to visit the area.

Festo Okidi, the Pader District Community Development Officer, who arrived at the scene a few hours after some of the houses had been burnt, said the incidents did not start on Monday but had been occurring for several weeks.

Okidi said that by the time he arrived, three houses had already been completely burnt.

He said residents appeared distressed and fearful, prompting the leaders to gather them together and offer them consolation as they tried to cope with the situation.

Okidi said that while they were at the scene, a loud popping sound was heard from a nearby house, after which white smoke was seen emerging from the rooftop of one of the grass-thatched houses in full view of community members.

He said that as residents rushed to respond, another house was similarly affected, leaving community members wondering what was happening in their village.

Okidi said some residents had started attributing the repeated fires to witchcraft, but cautioned against drawing conclusions without evidence.

He explained that two police officers were called to the scene and that the gunshots heard were fired by police.

According to Okidi, some community members believed that gunshots could help suppress what they perceived as evil spirits or make such spirits fear living things, which was why police were called to the scene.

Okidi also said he had discussed the situation with the chairperson of the National Fellowship of Born Again Christians to explore possible intervention in the community.

He said the LC I Chairperson should also pay attention to new people who may have recently settled in the area, noting that such incidents had not been common in the village before.

However, Okidi discouraged residents from pointing fingers at individuals prematurely or accusing anyone without evidence.

He called for calm among community members while urging them to remain watchful and prayerful as authorities and local leaders seek to understand the cause of the fires.

Okot said such incidents had not been common in Pagwari West, although he recalled that a house was burnt in the area several years ago at around 5am.

He said Pagwari West Village has about 85 households, making the recent series of fires a major concern for the community.

Okot said community leaders have scheduled a meeting with residents for Wednesday this week to discuss the repeated fires and find ways of addressing the situation.

The cause of the fires had not been established by the time of filing this report.