news 8 July 2026 The Observer (Uganda)

14 Dead, 28 Injured in Deadly Bus-Trailer Collision on Kampala-Gulu Highway

A horrific head-on collision between an Opit Travellers bus and a trailer on the Kampala-Gulu highway in Omoro district has resulted in 14 fatalities and 28 injuries. The accident occurred Tuesday night, with police preliminarily attributing the cause to excessive speeding by the bus driver. Source: https://observer.ug/news/police-confirm-14-dead-28-injured-in-kampala-gulu-highway-bus-crash

Tragedy struck the Kampala-Gulu highway late Tuesday night when a bus and a trailer collided head-on in Kulu Otit village, Bobi sub-county, Omoro district.

The Opit Travellers bus, traveling towards Gulu, impacted a trailer heading to Kampala around 9:30 p.m. The devastating crash claimed the lives of 14 people, including the drivers of both vehicles, and left 28 others with various injuries.

Victims were transported to multiple health facilities in Gulu city, including Lacor Hospital and Gulu Regional Referral Hospital, for urgent medical attention and postmortem examinations. Police are working to identify all deceased individuals and inform their next of kin.

Preliminary police investigations suggest the bus driver’s excessive speed was the primary cause of the accident. Aswa West regional police spokesperson David Ongom Mudong emphasized the recurrent issue of human error leading to road crashes on major routes, despite ongoing safety campaigns.

He urged motorists to exercise greater discipline and appealed to passengers to actively participate in road safety by speaking up against dangerous driving. However, eyewitness accounts suggest the bus driver may have swerved to avoid an intoxicated pedestrian, leading to the collision.

This latest incident underscores the persistent danger on the Kampala-Gulu highway, where speeding and reckless driving remain leading causes of fatal accidents. Road safety authorities continue to call for increased caution and responsible behavior from all road users.