a collision between two buses leaves at least 40 dead and 85 injured

First modification: 01/08/2023 – 18:09

It is the deadliest accident in recent years in Senegal. At least 40 people died and 85 were injured in a collision between two buses, the government reported on Sunday, January 8. Senegalese President Macky Sall declared a three-day period of national mourning.

The accident took place on Saturday night at 3:15 a.m. local time near the town of Kaffrine, some 250 km southeast of the capital Dakar, according to a statement from the National Fire Brigade.

According to the Government, the frontal clash left at least “40 dead, 36 seriously injured and 49 lightly injured.” A previous report from the firefighters and the Prosecutor’s Office stated that 38 people had died.

“Following the serious accident that occurred today in Gniby (town in Kaffrine), which has caused 40 deaths, I decided to declare a period of national mourning of three days from January 9,” Sall tweeted, who went to the scene, as did the prime minister and several other members of the Cabinet.

Need for “firm measures on road safety”

An inter-ministerial council will be held on Monday to “take firm measures on road safety and public passenger transport,” declared the head of state.

The Kaolack prosecutor (a city located about 60 km from Gniby) gave details about the cause of the tragedy: “according to the first elements of the investigation (…), a bus intended for public passenger transport, after the burst of a tire, skidded out of its path before colliding head-on with another bus coming from the opposite direction.

The victims were taken to Kaffrine hospital, human remains were removed from the buses and the road was reopened to traffic, firefighters said. The governor and the prefect went to the place.

The main Senegalese opponent, Ousmane Sonko, a candidate for the 2024 presidential elections, called on the authorities to “pay priority attention” to road insecurity, which he described as a “scourge with disastrous human, social and economic consequences for the country.” .

Frequent road accidents in Africa

Bus accidents are frequent in several African countries, due to poor vehicle maintenance, poor road conditions, and also driving errors. Many motorists own permits purchased from corrupt inspectors without having attended a training school.

21 people died Saturday night in the eastern part of the continent in a bus accident on the Kenya-Uganda border, Ugandan police said on Sunday. Most of the dead were Kenyans and eight Ugandans. According to police, 49 people were injured.

According to the preliminary investigation, the driver lost control of the vehicle due to speeding.

The Ugandan government is preparing new measures to improve road safety after the increase in fatal accidents during the holiday season. According to the Ugandan police, in just three days, from December 30 to January 1, there were 104 traffic accidents, which left 35 dead and 114 injured.

Last week, at least 14 people were killed in the Ivory Coast and 73 injured in a collision between two buses in the capital Yamoussoukro, and 18 were killed in a two-vehicle collision in northern Nigeria.

with AFP