All the nine victims of last Friday’s road accident in Kicukiro Trading Centre have been discharged from hospital.Seven people were killed while nine others were injured when a truck loaded with sand rammed into several parked vehicles and motorcycles.

Dr Theobard Hategekimana, the Director of Central University Hospital of Kigali (CHUK) that treated the injured, told The New Times yesterday that the victims had been sent home.

Jean Marie Ndushabandi, the spokesperson for Traffic and Road Safety Department at Rwanda National Police corroborated the information.

He said the victims had suffered minor injuries except one person that had serious injuries and was taken to Rwanda Military Hospital in Kanombe, adding that he is also back home.

"No other person died of their injuries. They were all treated and soon discharged,” he said.

He added that after the recovery of the injured, the next step is to see how the victims can be compensated through insurance.

He revealed that the police have already released the identities of the deceased victims.

The ill-fated Mercedes–Benz truck that experienced brake failure before crashing was heading to Kicukiro from Gahanga.

It subscribed to Prime Insurance Company.

Patients speak

Philip Ngendahimana, one of the victims said he was discharged on the same day after medication The resident of Gahanga in Kicukiro recalled that he was riding on a taxi moto from Sonatubes to Gahanga when he was hit by the truck.

He suffered injuries on his right hand and was covered by the sand that the truck carried.

He said he spent Rwf 26,415 on treatment as a subscriber of RAMA. Jolly Furaha, another victim recalled that she was accompanying her child to a primary school in Kicukiro when the accident occurred.

Furaha however, told The New Times she is yet to recover fully but is out of the hospital to escape the rising medical bills.

"My legs were seriously injured as of my child. We were shocked to find ourselves in the hospital. Though we were treated I still don’t feel well inside my body. Even, my child is still weak,” Furaha said.

Furaha said within a day medical bills had reached Rwf 134,000.

"We used to subscribe to Mutuelle de Santé before switching to Britam Insurance. But we were yet to receive insurance cards which increased the medical bills. I preferred to leave the hospital fearing costs. I don’t know whether there is any support for us,” she said.

Her child is in Primary one at Academy Primary School in Kicukiro.

Patrice Ntakirutima Prime Insurance Company official in charge of accident records said the declaration about the accident is yet to be done.