Security personnel stationed at Karuma Bridge has attributed Monday evening’s fatal truck crash to speeding after a vehicle plunged into the fast-flowing River Nile, killing three occupants.
The Fuso truck, which was carrying maize grains from Omoro District, veered off Karuma Bridge after failing to negotiate a bend while approaching from the Nwoya District side. One body and two legs has so far been recovered from the crash scene.
In an interview, a Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) soldier deployed at the bridge said the driver was travelling at a very high speed and failed to brake while approaching the bend.
“That truck was being driven very fast. It couldn’t stop at the bend. When it hit the guard rails and the concrete walls, we just saw it tilting up in the air and then it fell into the water,” said the soldier, who declined to be named.
The soldier added that the driver may have suffered a mechanical failure or was possibly driving under the influence of alcohol.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Aswa West Police Spokesperson David Ongom Mudong identified the driver as Jamal Okello, 28 years old. Mudong said that one body, yet to be identified, and two legs were recovered from the crash site and taken to Anaka Hospital mortuary in Nwoya District.
According to Mudong, the truck was transporting maize grains loaded from Lelabaro Trading Centre in Omoro District to Kiryandongo District. He added that the vehicle had two other occupants a male and a female whose bodies are still missing.
Mudong further revealed that in an earlier incident, the same driver had been stopped from driving after appearing intoxicated with alcohol.
At the crash scene, maize grains, shoes, and transportation documents were scattered across the bridge deck. The guard rails and parapet walls that were struck by the truck sustained minimal damage.
Officials from the Ministry of Works and Transport said the limited damage to the bridge infrastructure demonstrates the effectiveness of recent safety upgrades.
Allan Ssempebwa, the Communications Manager at the Ministry of Works and Transport, told Uganda Radio Network that recent rehabilitation works have significantly strengthened safety measures at the bridge.
“As a ministry, we have made deliberate efforts to beef up safety measures along the bridge. The recent rehabilitation efforts have strengthened safety interventions, and in incidents like this, the infrastructure is able to withstand impact and offer protection,” Ssempebwa said.
However, Ssempebwa cautioned motorists against reckless driving, noting that despite improved safety features, dangerous driving behaviour can still result in fatal crashes.
While the police are attributing the death toll at three, Yafez Labeja, whose relatives own the truck suspects there were a total of seven people inside the truck by the time it plunged into the river.
By Press time, the police with coordination from the Transport Ministry were still planning on retrieving parts of the truck wreckage which were still visible in the water.
This is the first major incidence since the bridge was rehabilitated a year ago with speed signage, speed calming measures, stringer guard rails and parapet walls and lights.
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