Thirty-eight people were killed and 87 injured in a collision between two buses in Senegal, firefighters said on Sunday. The accident took place on the night of Saturday to Sunday, at 03:15 local time (01:15 GMT), near the town of Kaffrineabout 250 km southeast of the capital Dakar, according to a statement from the National Fire Brigade.
The victims were transported to Kaffrine hospital, the carcasses of the buses cleared and the road reopened to traffic, according to the firefighters. The governor and the prefect had gone to the scene. Bus accidents are frequent in Africa, due to poor vehicle maintenance, bad roads but also driving errors, many motorists being holders of permits bought from corrupt inspectors, without having ever attended driving school.
However, it is the deadliest accident in Senegal in recent years. Last week, at least fourteen people were killed and 73 injured in a collision between two buses in Yamoussoukro (Ivory Coast) and 18 people died in a collision between two vehicles in northern Nigeria.