Over 60 students from Ngoma Standard Secondary School in Budaka District are recovering from injuries after a serious accident on the Mbale-Tirinyi highway.
The students were returning from an external school event when the vehicle they were traveling in overturned, leaving several critically injured. The accident occurred near Nabweyo Village in Budaka Town Council and involved a blue Isuzu Elf truck, registration number UAS 317S, which was carrying 70 students and five teachers.
Seven students with severe injuries were taken to Mbale Regional Referral Hospital for specialized treatment, while others received care at Budaka Health Centre IV.
Preliminary reports suggest that the truck’s brakes failed, causing it to roll backward on a steep hill before overturning. Local police revealed that the vehicle was in poor mechanical condition and was unsuitable for transporting such a large number of passengers.
The driver fled the scene and remains missing. Police and emergency responders quickly arrived to assist the injured and transport them to medical facilities, while the vehicle was taken to Budaka Police Station for further investigation.
Authorities expressed concern over the ongoing practice of using unsafe and overloaded vehicles to transport students. Despite Ministry of Education and Sports guidelines issued in 2000 that prohibit the use of lorries for student transport and ban travel after 8 pm, many schools continue to violate these regulations. Public schools often cite limited resources as the reason for not hiring safer vehicles, raising ongoing concerns about student safety and compliance with the guidelines.