Senegal: a collision between two buses kills 39, a national mourning decreed

A terrible accident occurred in the night from Saturday to Sunday, on a road in the south-west of Senegal, it is the deadliest accident in the country in recent years. A shock took place between two buses around 3:15 a.m. local time near the town of Kaffrine, about 250 km southeast of the capital Dakar, according to a press release from the National Fire Brigade. According to the government, the head-on collision left 39 dead, 53 hospitalized and 42 slightly injured.

“I am deeply saddened by the tragic road accident today in Gniby, causing 40 deaths (authorities later gave the death toll at 39) and many seriously injured. I send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to the injured,” wrote President Macky Sall, announcing national mourning in the country.

“Following today’s serious accident in Gniby which caused 40 deaths, I have decided on a national mourning for 3 days from January 9th. An interministerial council will be held on the same date to take firm measures on road safety and public passenger transport,” he added. As of Monday, the Prime Minister will convene an interministerial council to take measures relating to the condition of vehicles, technical inspection, the issuance of driving licenses or even transport schedules.

The public prosecutor of Kaolack gave details on the cause of the tragedy: “according to the first elements of the investigation (…), a bus assigned to the public transport of passengers, following the bursting of a tire , left its trajectory before colliding head-on with another bus coming in the opposite direction”.

Frequent accidents

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. The main Senegalese opponent Ousmane Sonko, candidate for the 2024 presidential election, indicated on Twitter that he was postponing a fundraising operation because of the accident and called on the authorities to “give priority attention” to road insecurity, a “scourge with disastrous human, social and economic consequences for the country”.

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. Twenty-one people were killed Saturday evening in East Africa in a bus accident on the border between Kenya and Uganda, Ugandan police said on Sunday. The majority of those who died are of Kenyan nationality but there are also eight Ugandans. According to the police, 49 people were injured. According to the first elements of the investigation, the driver would have lost control of the vehicle due to excessive speed.

The Ugandan government is preparing new measures to improve road safety after a spike in fatalities during the holiday season. According to the Ugandan police, 104 road accidents were recorded in just three days, from December 30 to January 1, leaving 35 dead and 114 injured. Last week, at least 14 people were killed in Côte d’Ivoire and 73 injured in a collision between two buses in Yamoussoukro (center) and 18 people died in a collision between two vehicles in northern Nigeria.


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