38 people died and 87 were injured when two buses collided
Following the tragedy, which took place from Saturday to Sunday night, the President decided to observe three days of national mourning.
The victims were taken to Kafrin Hospital, the bodies of the buses were removed and the road was reopened for traffic, firefighters said.
AFP
38 dead and 87 injured after two buses collide in Senegal This is the worst accident in the country in recent years.
According to the national fire brigade, the tragedy occurred between Saturday and Sunday at 3:15 am local time (4:15 am in Switzerland), near the town of Kafrin, 250 km southeast of the capital Dakar.
The head of state, “deeply saddened by the tragic road accident”, noted in a tweet that “40 people died” and concluded “a national mourning for three days from Monday”. He is expected there in the afternoon.
An interim council will be held on Monday “to take concrete steps on road safety and public passenger transport”, he said.
The public prosecutor of Kayolak described the cause of the tragedy: “According to the first elements of the investigation (…), following a tire burst, the bus assigned to the public transport of passengers left its lane before colliding head-on. -On another bus coming in the opposite direction”.
Frequent accidents in Africa
The magistrate prompts a “provisional assessment” of the 38 dead and 78 injured, including serious cases. Firefighters initially put the toll at 38 dead and 87 injured.
The victims were taken to Kafrin Hospital, the bodies of the buses were removed and the road was reopened for traffic, firefighters said.
Bus accidents in Africa are frequent due to poor vehicle maintenance, bad roads, but also driver errors, many drivers have not attended driving school and have permits bought from corrupt inspectors.
At least 21 people were killed in a bus accident on the border between Kenya and Uganda on Saturday evening, Ugandan police said on Sunday. Most of the dead were Kenyans but there were also eight Ugandans. Police said 49 people were injured.
Activities in Uganda
The Ugandan government is preparing new measures to improve road safety following a spike in fatalities during the holiday season. According to the Uganda Police, 104 road accidents were recorded in the three days from December 30 to January 1, in which 35 people died and 114 were injured.
Last week, at least 14 people were killed in Cote d’Ivoire and 73 injured when two buses collided in Yamoussogro (central) and 18 died when two vehicles collided in northern Nigeria.
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