Baby dead after bus plunges into river

Aug 27, 2008

A SEARCH for the body of a two-year-old child started yesterday following the Tuesday accident in which a mini-bus plunged into River Aswa on the Gulu-Pader district border.

By Steven Candia
and Chris Ocowun


A SEARCH for the body of a two-year-old child started yesterday following the Tuesday accident in which a mini-bus plunged into River Aswa on the Gulu-Pader district border.

Northern region Police commander Phinehas Arinaitwe said most of the 40 passengers were rescued shortly after the accident.

About 13 survivors were taken to hospitals. Those who were not hurt left soon after the crash.
Yesterday’s operation kicked off at midday conducted by the Police and the army.

The Coaster, UAH 397G, was heading to Kitgum from Gulu when it plunged into the river at about 6:00pm with over 40 passengers on board, raising fears about 30 had perished.

At the time of the accident, Robert Ben Oyat, the driver, was reportedly engrossed in a conversation with a woman seated next to him, survivors said. The army sent divers and a crane to pull the bus from the bottom of the river. The wreckage was hauled out at about 2:15pm but there was no body trapped in it, save for the passengers’ belongings.

Traffic on the Gulu-Kitgum road was halted for two hours as soldiers struggled to remove the bus from the water.

Many people from the nearby villages of Lapuda and Angarura gathered at the bridge.

Police spokesperson Judith Nabakooba said 13 survivors had been rescued by Tuesday night and had been admitted to various hospitals in Gulu, Pader and Kitgum districts.

Among the survivors, she said, were two people who said they had lost their children –– one of two years and the other one-and-a-half.

Police identified some of the survivors as Michael Yetloma, SPC Charles Ongole, Francis Kirama, Willy Ocit, Apio Ayela, William Olweny, Michael Opio, Santa Akello, Evelyn Acen, Jennifer Aloyo, Magdalene Achola, Pamela Laker and a man only identified as Kasulu.

The cause of the accident had not been established by yesterday but Gulu LC5 chairman Walter Ochora did not rule out speeding.
He said other reports said the bus hit a hole in the bridge before veering off.

A loaded truck broke one of the slabs on the bridge, creating a gaping hole in the middle. The Ministry of Works did not replace the slab while repairing the bridge, Ochora said.

“If the driver had not been speeding, he would have seen the hole and avoided it,” Ochora added.
Richard Komakech, a UPDF soldier, accused the driver of reckless driving.

“We shouted at the driver to reduce the speed when we reached the bridge but he instead accelerated,” he said. “I was rescued from the vehicle although my three bullet magazines and poncho remained in the water.”

Molly Ayoo, a 16-year-old student of St Mauriz Primary School in Gulu, said the bus was overloaded and speeding.

“We asked the driver to slow down but the vehicle plunged into the river.”

On December 2000, a bus plunged into River Nile at Karuma Bridge, killing 10 passengers.

In October 2003, a trailer triggered off a multiple accident on the River Nile. Three vehicles were pushed into the water, killing three. A year later, seven people died after two vehicles knocked them in Iganga.

In December 2006, a family of five perished when their car plunged into a river in Kamuli.

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