Trigger Warning: This article mentions details of a tragic road accident leading to death.
In shocking news, a crash killed more than 40 people and left several others injured in a collision involving two buses in Uganda, Africa. The crash occurred just after midnight, around 12:15 a.m. on Wednesday, October 22, along the Kampala-Gulu Highway near Kitaleba Village in the country’s Central Region.
According to the Uganda Police Force, all 46 people ( it was revised from 63 as per the outlet editorji) were confirmed dead, with many others sustaining injuries.
Authorities stated that four vehicles were involved in the fatal collision with two buses, a truck, and a car head-on near the town of Kiryandongo. Reports reveal that the driver of one bus, an Isuzu, attempted to overtake a Tata lorry, and at he same time, a second bus coming from the opposite direction was overtaking a car.
Kampala-Gulu Crash: Death toll revised to 46, not 63 police say some unconscious victims were miscounted.
President Museveni offers UGX 5M to each bereaved family, UGX 1M to the injured, and urges road safety. #Uganda #RoadSafety pic.twitter.com/L0ADVYdiNe
— Capital FM Uganda (@CapitalFMUganda) October 22, 2025
As per PEOPLE, the injured were quickly taken to Kiryandongo Hospital and nearby clinics for treatment. In contrast, the bodies of those who died were taken to the morgue for appropriate identification and post-mortem procedures.
“One of the drivers swerved to avoid the crash, but instead caused a head-on and side collision, sparking a chain reaction that led other vehicles to lose control and overturn multiple times,” police reported. “At the time of the crash, several victims were found unconscious, and some may have been mistakenly included in the initial fatality count,” they added.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, and we wish a swift recovery to the injured,” the police said in a statement.
Consequently, frequent accidents like these are common as the streets of Uganda are narrow and densely populated. Official police statistics showcase an increase in road fatalities in Uganda over recent years. A total of 5,144 people died from road accidents in 2024, up from 4,806 in 2023 and 4,534 in 2022.
Authorities have urged all road users to exercise extreme caution, emphasizing that reckless overtaking continues to be one of the leading causes of fatal accidents in Uganda. In a similar accident case from August, a bus carrying mourners from a funeral in southwestern Kenya overturned and fell off.
It killed 25 people and injured many others. Furthermore, Uganda is considered a poor country with a low gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. Its roads are not well-made and are often unpaved.
🚨Forty-six lives gone in a single crash. Uganda’s roads have become death traps, and every tragedy like this exposes how little is done about safety enforcement.
Bad infrastructure, reckless driving, zero accountability, this isn’t an accident anymore, it’s a national failure. pic.twitter.com/PKglrVIIMN
— TheCommonVoice (@MaxRumbleX) October 22, 2025
One in 10 deaths in Uganda occurred because of road accidents in 2018. Several roads are not managed well, and the construction remains incomplete. People have protested several times against the dangerous potholes and unfinished projects that the government often abandons.
Not to mention that the rains make these roads worse to travel on. Tourists who wish to experience the beautiful culture and scenic beauty of the country often suffer when these roads are bad due to weather or negligence. Moreover, farmers who also contribute to Uganda’s rich agricultural landscape suffer when roads are in poor condition.
They are unable to travel to sell their crops to sustain an income to fulfil their daily needs. Along with this, farmers and other passengers may also need to repair their vehicles more often because of unpaved roads being unsuitable for the two rainy seasons in Uganda. Therefore, the whole scenario is disrupted, and livelihood is affected. ( via The Borgen Project).
