60 injured when truck carrying 70 students overturns in Mbale

Amos Khaemba, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Uganda – At least 60 people were injured in a serious accident on the Mbale-Tirinyi Highway.

The Observer reported that on Sunday, September 23, a truck carrying students from Ngoma Standard Secondary School in Budaka District crashed.

The accident occurred near the village of Nabweyo. It involved a blue Isuzu Elf truck with the registration number UAS 317S, which was carrying 70 students and five teachers.

The students were on their way back from an outdoor school event when the truck overturned and several of them were in critical condition.

Seven students who sustained serious injuries are currently receiving specialist treatment at the Mbale Regional Referral Hospital, while others have been treated at the Budaka Health Centre IV.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the truck's brakes failed, causing it to overturn after rolling backwards down a steep hill.

Traffic police said the truck was in a dangerous mechanical condition (DMC) and not suitable to carry such a large number of passengers.

The driver fled the scene of the accident and is still at large.

Authorities expressed serious concerns about the unsafe transportation of students in overloaded vehicles.

Source: TUKO.co.ke