Uganda is confronting an urgent learner-transport safety crisis after four serious crashes connected to school trips were reported in Mukono, Bugweri, Kapchorwa and Kamuli within only eight days.
Between July 10 and July 17, 2026, the crashes claimed at least 26 lives and left dozens of learners, teachers and other passengers injured. The incidents involved a collision with a passenger train, a bus hitting a stationary trailer, a devastating overturning in Kapchorwa and a collision with a sugarcane truck in Kamuli.
Mukono: Bus carrying learners collides with trainThe first crash was reported on July 10 at Namumira–Bukasa Village in Mukono District.
A hired bus transporting students and staff of Mwebaze High School, Kakiri, to Jinja for an educational trip collided with a passenger train at a railway crossing along Katosi Road. Police confirmed that one female passenger died at the scene while several students sustained injuries and were taken to Mukono General Referral Hospital and other health facilities.
Uganda Railways Corporation said preliminary information indicated that the bus approached the crossing at high speed and failed to stop despite instructions from a railway police officer stationed near the crossing.
Bugweri: Driver killed and 15 people injuredFour days later, another school trip ended in tragedy along the Mbale–Iganga Highway in Bugweri District. The bus, owned by Amuria High School, was transporting 73 students from St Paul Secondary School in Katakwi to Kasenyi Landing Site for a geography field study.
At approximately 4:45 a.m., the bus hit the rear of a stationary trailer at Nawangisa Village. The driver, identified as 68-year-old Kasakya Abdallah, died at the scene. Fifteen other occupants—13 students, one teacher and the bus conductor—were injured and transported to Iganga General Hospital.
Kapchorwa: National tragedy claims 24 livesThe most devastating incident occurred on the evening of July 16 when a bus belonging to King David Junior School overturned along the Kapchorwa–Mbale Road. The learners were returning to Kampala after an educational visit to Sipi Falls when the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle. The bus left the road, struck a large roadside rock and overturned.
An official Uganda Police Force update issued on July 17 confirmed that the death toll had risen to 24 after three more pupils succumbed to their injuries while receiving treatment. Police said 18 bodies had been positively identified at the time of the update, while six others remained at hospitals awaiting identification. Twenty-three injured victims remained admitted at Kapchorwa Hospital.
Investigations into the exact cause of the crash were still underway.Kamuli: Students injured in collision with sugarcane truck
Before the country had recovered from the Kapchorwa tragedy, another bus carrying learners crashed in Kamuli District on the night of July 17. The bus, which belonged to Bugaya Secondary School, was transporting 31 Nalango Secondary School students when it collided with a sugarcane truck at Busota, near Busota Health Centre III.
Police said no death was confirmed, but several learners sustained fractures and other serious injuries. Some were admitted to Busota Health Centre, while those requiring further care were transferred to larger medical facilities. Preliminary police investigations indicated that the sugarcane-truck driver may have attempted to overtake at high speed without a clear view of the road ahead.
A repeated pattern that demands attentionAlthough each crash occurred under different circumstances, the incidents expose recurring risks in the transportation of learners. Several journeys were conducted either before sunrise or late at night. Questions have also emerged around speeding, dangerous overtaking, driver discipline, vehicle inspection, fatigue, railway-crossing safety and the planning of long-distance school trips.
These are not matters that should be addressed only after learners have died. Schools, transport companies, drivers, traffic officers and education authorities all carry responsibility for ensuring that children travel in safe vehicles under properly supervised conditions.
Government suspends educational tripsFollowing the Kapchorwa tragedy, the Ministry of Education and Sports suspended all school educational trips and excursions across Uganda until further notice. Schools that were already conducting trips were instructed to report to the nearest police station so that their learners could be guided or escorted home safely.
Government said the suspension would allow authorities to investigate the recent crashes, review existing school-trip regulations, strengthen safety guidelines and conduct road-safety sensitisation involving schools, teachers, drivers and transport companies.
Authorities are also examining broader reforms governing the daily transportation of learners. Traffic and Road Safety Director Lawrence Nuwabiine said discussions had expanded beyond occasional educational trips to include ordinary school vans and buses, with mandatory colour coding among the proposals being considered.
Temporary action must become lasting protectionSuspending school trips may prevent further immediate danger, but it should not become another short-lived response that fades when public attention moves elsewhere. Uganda requires enforceable learner-transport standards covering mechanical inspection, driver competence, maximum travel hours, passenger limits, emergency preparedness, parental communication and accountability when safety requirements are ignored.
Educational trips are intended to expand children’s knowledge and experience. Parents should not have to wonder whether their children will return home safely.
The deaths and injuries recorded in Mukono, Bugweri, Kapchorwa and Kamuli must become a turning point in the way Uganda regulates and supervises the transportation of learners.Reporting by Richardson Kyeyune — Chief, iTV News.
