Musanze accident claims one, injures six

One person died on the spot and six others sustained injuries on Monday after a taxi they were travelling in swerved off the Musanze-Cyanika road in Musanze district. This was the second accident in the area within a week, after three people were on Saturday injured on the same road.The deceased was identified as Philomene Ayigihugu. Three of the victims who sustained serious injuries were still admitted at Ruhengeri Hospital.Epiphany Mukamuriza, a witness at the scene, told The New Times that the speeding taxi registration number RAA 689 C, failed to negotiate a bend and hit the rear of the truck heading to Musanze, forcing it to swerve off the road. She said overspeeding taxis are a common sight along this road and a solution must be devised to reverse the trend.Pierre Mugabo, another witness at the scene blamed the accident on lack of enough police officers on the road. “It is a common tendency for taxi drivers here to overload and over speed,” he said.He pointed out that several fatal accidents have been recorded on this particular road over the years and most of the time people die because of the drivers’ carelessness.Supt. Francis Gahima, the Northern Region Police Spokesperson, attributed the accidents to overspeeding especially by commuter taxi drivers competing for passengers. He challenged the public to play an active role in the prevention of such accidents by warning or reporting to the police careless drivers.In a related development, a cyclist still unidentified by press time, died on spot when he rammed into another commuter taxi in Musanze town yesterday.

National

Musanze accident claims one, injures six