KARUMA – The death toll from the Karuma Bridge accident is feared to have risen to seven after a truck plunged into the River Nile in Nwoya District on Tuesday morning. The Fuso truck, registration number UAY 284Q, was transporting maize from Lelabaro Trading Centre in Omoro District to Central Uganda when it crashed at Karuma Bridge.
According to Kasule Ogwal, the Nwoya District Officer in Charge of Traffic, the truck had earlier been inspected at the Karuma–Pakwach junction before it hit the left side of the newly installed guard rail and plunged into the fast-flowing river.
Initial police reports had indicated that the truck was carrying three occupants. However, new information from the Aswa West Police Spokesperson, David Ongom Mudong, shows that six people were on board at the time the vehicle left Lelabaro, including the driver and four loaders, all residents of Lelabaro Trading Centre. Police have since received information that another woman may also have been in the vehicle, pushing the possible number of occupants to seven.
Mudong says the driver, Okello Jamal, was allegedly heavily intoxicated at the time of the journey. He adds that the owner of the maize reportedly tried to stop him from driving, but he ignored the warning. The other occupants have been identified only as Sunday, Moze, Opiyo, and Onek, all brokers from Lelabaro Trading Centre in Omoro District.
Ogwal told Uganda Radio Network that one body has so far been retrieved, while the others are still missing. Parts of the vehicle remain visible in the river as search and recovery efforts continue. Officials from the Ministry of Works and Transport, together with the Police Marine Unit, have been notified to support the operation. Police say investigations into the exact cause of the accident are ongoing.
The incident occurred about a year after the Ministry of Works and Transport replaced guard rails and installed bridge parapet walls at Karuma Bridge to reduce accidents involving vehicles plunging into the river. Street lights were also installed to improve visibility for motorists, especially at night.
This is a developing story.
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