Kenyan truck knocks S4 student dead in Mpigi
Candidate Joseph Buyondo Balikundembe died on spot after he was knocked by a cargo truck on June 1, 2023. PHOTO/BRIAN ADAMS KESSIME
What you need to know:
- Eyewitness Peter Lwanga said the speeding truck, which had a translucent polythene acting as a windscreen, was coming from the Masaka City direction- and heading towards Kampala City.
The students and school authorities at Wamatovu Seed Secondary School in Mpigi District are mourning one of their own students who was knocked dead at Nakirebe Village on the Kampala-Masaka Highway.
The 18-year-old Joseph Buyondo Balikundembe was killed by a speeding Kenyan cargo truck that lost control, knocking the student dead on his way to school at about 7am.
“The Mercedes Benz truck was being driven by a resident of Kenya’s capital Nairobi, Sylver Fikiri Kaningu,” Katonga region police spokesperson ASP Lydia Tumushabe revealed in a statement.
Eyewitness Peter Lwanga said the speeding truck, which had a translucent polythene acting as a windscreen, was coming from the Masaka City direction- and heading towards Kampala City.
“The speeding truck lost control and knocked the student who died on the spot. I suspect that the lack of a clear windscreen could have caused the poor vision on the part of the driver before he lost control,” he said.
Wamatovu Seed Secondary School head teacher Abubaker Sseruyange confirmed to Monitor that the victim of Thursday’s accident was in Senior Four class and had already reported back for term two studies.
“It is unfortunate that we have lost him. We wrote to the Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra) requesting for road humps at this particular road section where we have both the primary and secondary school but our request is yet to yield fruit,” he said.
By press time, the student’s body had been taken to Gombe Hospital Mortuary for postmortem on Thursday.
The road section between the districts of Mpigi, Butambala and Ssembabule has claimed more than four lives since Monday including a pilgrim.
Foot pilgrim Margaret Namatovu who was walking to Namugongo Martyrs shrine ahead of the annual June 3 Martyrs Day was knocked dead at Kayenje Village in Gombe Town Council, Butambala District on May 29, 2023.
