Five mourners dead, 35 injured in Bundibugyo road crash

At least five mourners have been confirmed dead following a road crash that also left 35 others injured, authorities have said.

The tragedy occurred after the truck they were travelling on broke down at Bugombwa Hill, along the Bundibugyo-Nyahuka Road in Bundibugyo District on Saturday.

"It had a mechanical problem and went off the road. The driver, only identified as Aramathan, is on the run and we are looking for him,” Bundibugyo District officer in charge of traffic Salim Ajeti Musa told Monitor.

The ill-fated Isuzu Canter vehicle was ferrying mourners from the burial of their relative in Nyahuka Town Council, and were on their way back to Ntotoro Sub-county in Bundibugyo District.

Police on Sunday identified the deceased as Federesi Badhedwa (31 years), Godwin Amanya (18 years), Moreen Asiimwe (23 years), Rhoda Thungu (46 years) Tom and Bahemuka (36 years).

Most of the injured are in critical condition and have been admitted to different hospitals within and outside the district, according to authorities.

Ajeti said “although preliminary investigations point to a mechanical fault as the cause of the road crash, further investigations are underway.”

Accident survivor Abudalla Ssemujju told Monitor that when the vehicle started speeding, he jumped off and landed in the nearby bush.

"The vehicle started misbehaving after crossing the humps of Busaru Trading Center. There, we managed to climb the hill of Semuliki, but when we started ascending to Bundibugyo Town Council at Bugombwa Hill, I heard the driver struggling to put in gears, and all was in vain.

I saw the vehicle running at a terrible speed, and I jumped before it knocked the roadside and overturned. I survived with minor injuries," he added.

At the time of filing this report, bodies of the deceased were still at Bundibugyo Hospital mortuary, awaiting a post-mortem.

Between Friday and Saturday, Ugandan authorities reported a combined 8 fatalities from crashes on roads in Hoima City (1), Ntungamo District (1), Kabale District (1) and Bundibugyo District (5).