Four die, scores injured in Iganga accident

Residents look at the wreckage of the taxi that was parked at Iganga police station.. PHOTO BY YAZID YOLISIGIRA

What you need to know:

  • Police condemned the act and warned motorist against contravening traffic guidelines.
  • The injured were identified as Rajab Musisi, Winnie Nabirye, Jamal Mulavu, Rehema Auma, Henry Gonza, Samson Lubanga and Robinah Akiror. These were immediately rushed to Iganga Hospital with fractured legs, hands and ribs.

Four people have been confirmed dead while others sustained injuries when the taxi in which they were traveling collided with an oncoming Fuso Truck at Igenge Village along the Iganga-Jinja Highway.

According to Mr Yusuf Maganda, an eyewitness, the Monday night accident occurred when the Fuso driver tried to overtake at a wrong point.
“The driver of the Fuso was speeding and as he tried to overtake in a corner, he collided with a taxi which was coming from the opposite direction,” he said.

The Busoga East region police publicist, James Mubi, identified three of the deceased as Mwamadhi Magumba, a resident of Walanga Village in Iganga, Joseph Abra, a resident of Iganga and Joan Nafuna, a resident of Bugiri; while the identity of the fourth person remained unknown. By press time, the bodies were still lying at Iganga Hospital mortuary.

The injured were identified as Rajab Musisi, Winnie Nabirye, Jamal Mulavu, Rehema Auma, Henry Gonza, Samson Lubanga and Robinah Akiror. These were immediately rushed to Iganga Hospital with fractured legs, hands and ribs.

Mr Mubi attributed the accident to reckless driving by the Fuso driver who fled the scene. “He was speeding and wanted to overtake in a corner which was wrong. If he had observed traffic guidelines, perhaps the accident could not have occurred,” he said.

At the accident scene, locals recounted how they struggled to break into the wreckage to retrieve the deceased and injured.

“Some passengers sustained gruesome injuries that we collected some of their body parts by hands and loaded them onto the police vehicle,” Mr Musa Tenywa said.

Police condemned the act and warned motorist against contravening traffic guidelines.

Cases of road accidents are on the rise in Iganga District, with nine people having perished in a period of one month.