Police in Lakes State reported eight women dying in a bushfire in Rumbek East County on Saturday, with three still missing. A total of eleven women were involved in the tragedy. 

A conflicting report states that there were only seven confirmed tragedies, with another woman escaping with minor injuries.

According to a spokesperson for the local police service, Major Elijah Mabor Makuac, the women had been cutting grass for thatching when a wildfire engulfed the area. 

“We were told that this group of women went to that forest for cutting grass [sic]. As you know, these are our local materials here [sic] being used for construction, building of the houses”, Makuac told South Sudan in Focus on Sunday.  

He continued, saying, “They were actually went there [sic] to cut the grass and, unfortunately, that tragic incident occurred on them.”

The wildfire is theorised to have been started by “wreckless smokers”, hunters, or fishermen.

According to Makuac, “Many activities are involved in that area [...] You can find somebody going to cattle camps. And among our people, there are smokers who might be negligently drop the fire [sic], and you could not know. Other people might be moving to riverside for pitching.”

Authorities have expressed their condolences to the families of the deceased. They have also issued a public safety announcement to be careful when cutting grass during the dry season when bushfires are more likely to happen.