At least 20 schoolchildren and one adult have been killed after a bus carrying pupils on a study trip crashed in eastern Uganda, local officials said, in one of the country's deadliest road accidents involving children in recent years.
The Uganda Police Force confirmed the deaths following the crash, which occurred on Thursday evening at Chekwatit Village, Kimawa Parish, Kawowo Sub-county, Kapchorwa District.
The pupils of King David Junior School, Ndejje, were returning from an educational tour to Sipi Falls when the bus they were travelling in reportedly developed a mechanical fault at around 8:00 pm. The driver is said to have lost control before the vehicle crashed.
“We wish to confirm that a total of 21 people, comprising 20 pupils and one adult, have so far been confirmed dead. The crash involved an Isuzu bus, registration number UA 108BQ, belonging to King David Junior School, Ndejje, Makindye Division, Kampala. The driver has not yet been identified,” Michael Kananura of the Directorate of Traffic and Road Safety said.
“Preliminary investigations indicate that the school bus had taken pupils on an educational tour to Sipi Falls in Kapchorwa District.
