Three people died on the spot while four others were injured following a single fatal road crash involving a Trinity bus along the Kabale–Mbarara Highway in Rukiga District in the wee hours of Monday morning, Police have confirmed.
The Trinity bus, registration number RAT 597K, was travelling from Kigali, Rwanda, to Kampala when the accident occurred at Bukinda–Kakatunda at 3am.
According to Kigezi Region Police spokesperson Elly Maate, preliminary investigations indicate that the driver lost control while negotiating a slope.
“The vehicle veered off the road, entered a water channel and slid into a deep trench. As the bus slid, its door reportedly broke while passengers were attempting to escape,” Maate said.
He added that in the process, three adult male passengers were crushed and died instantly, while four others, including the driver, sustained injuries.
The deceased were identified as Lubwama John Herbert, 26, a Ugandan national from Kanyanya Village in Kawempe Division, Wakiso District; Habineza Alfred, 30, a Rwandan national and bus conductor; and Gadaffi, a Rwandan national who was also a bus conductor.
The injured include the driver, Habiyaremye Ananias, 44, a resident of Rwamagana District in Rwanda, as well as three adult female passengers whose identities had not yet been established by the time of reporting.
Maate said over-speeding while descending a slope was the primary suspected cause of the crash.
“The injured were rushed to Kabale Regional Referral Hospital using a Ministry of Health ambulance, while the bodies of the deceased were taken to Kabale Hospital mortuary for postmortem examinations,” he said.
The wreckage of the bus was towed and parked at Rukiga Central Police Station pending inspection by the Inspector of Vehicles, as police investigations into the crash continue.
