Vehicle Accident - Africa - Uganda
- Details
- Category: Alerts
- Published on Tuesday, 18 September 2012 03:42
- Written by RSOE EDIS
EDIS Number: VI-20120919-36618-UGA
Date / time: 19/09/2012 03:40:05 [UTC]
Event: Vehicle Accident
Area: Africa
Country: Uganda
State/County: Central Region
Location: Malongo
Number of Deads: 14 person(s)
Number of Injured: N/A
Number of Infected: N/A
Number of Missing: N/A
Number of Affected: N/A
Number of Evacuated: N/A
Damage level: Heavy
Description:
At least 14 people died in a bus accident at Malongo, 59kms south of Masaka town along the road to Mbarara, in the wee hours of yesterday. The bus, registration number UAM 937B, belonging to Horizon Coaches, was headed for Kampala, from Kisoro. According to the Horizon Coaches Mbarara branch manager, Stephen Mushagara, the accident occurred at about 2am. Cries for help by passengers on board attracted residents of the area, but they could not do much, as the bus was ablaze. “The people’s cries woke me from my sleep, but on reaching here, it appeared impossible for us to help them. And when the police came, they had just about two fire extinguishers, which could also not do much in putting out the fire,” said Frank Kayemba, a resident of Malongo village. Onlookers said about three passengers were able to jump out unhurt, while several others sustained serious injuries as they struggled to escape from the inferno. They then watched in disbelief as their fellow passengers burnt to death. The fourteenth victim died on the way to Lyantonde hospital, according to Kenneth Musinguzi Kabwigo, the officer in charge of Kyazanga police station. However, by yesterday afternoon, the police could not tell with certainty what the death toll was, as they could not account for the injured passengers that had been rushed to various hospitals in the aftermath of the accident.
The police could also not confirm how many passengers were on board, but Mushagara told journalists that the bus was not overloaded as some people had suggested, saying it left Kisoro with 26 people on board, and that by the time it left Mbarara, it was carrying between 52 and 54 passengers. He also refuted claims that the bus could have been in dangerous mechanical condition, saying it was one of their best maintained buses. “This bus has been sound all along; it had no mechanical problem. It was just an accident,” Mushagara said. The identities of the deceased are yet to be established, since many were burnt beyond recognition, save for the driver, Julius Mugisha, whose body was found trapped in the driver’s seat and a woman, identified at the time only as Carolyn of Kinoni, in Rugando sub-county, Mbarara district, who died on the way to Lyantonde hospital. Some survivors blamed the accident on reckless driving, saying Mugisha had repeatedly ignored passengers’ calls to slow down. “Several of us complained about the high speed, but the driver ignored us. When so many people started complaining, even his conductor began pleading with him to slow down, but he still refused to listen,” Bernard Miryango, one of the survivors, told The Observer at Lyantonde hospital where he had been admitted.Authors: RSOE EDIS
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