ITU-D -FLASH • 2015 UGANDA: HARNESSING THE POWER OF ICTS TO PROMOTE DISASTER RISK REDUCTION It was just after midnight when Simon* was woken up by a loud blaring noise tearing into the dark night. It had been raining heavily over the past few days and Simon thought a lorry was stuck on the muddy main road.He tried to ignore the noise, but it got louder with each passing second. He stepped out of his bed. Even before his feet could reach the floor he felt wetness. He stood up, the water was ankle high.It was at that moment that he realized the noise outside was not a lorry but the newly installed flood warning system.\"Wake up, wake up,\" he shouted to his wife. \"The flood is approaching we must leave the house now. Get the children out of the house now\" he said, wading through the water to reach the door.\"We must try and reach the hill on the other side of the road. It is high ground and the flood water does not reach there,\" he told his family.By the time Simon and his family got to the main road the water was already knee high.Safe on high ground, the villagers huddled in small groups to discuss their night ordeal.\"That siren they have installed by the river has saved the lives of our families. It is very loud, but I don't mind as long as it will help save lives in our village. After all, some of us are deep sleepers,\" said Simon as his fellow villages nodded in approval.For many years Butaleja District in Eastern Uganda has been ravaged by flood waters from the River Manafwa.Residents have watched helplessly as the water destroyed their farmlands, washed away their houses and other properties.To help address the situation, the Government of Uganda, with the support of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), installed solar powered Flood Early Warning Systems to warn residents of raising water levels.The first flood warning system was installed on 22 September 2014, on the Namulo * Simon is not his real name Bridge in Butaleja District.Flood water sensors on River Manafwa