Twenty schoolchildren died late Thursday when a bus carrying them home from a trip to Sipi Falls in eastern Uganda crashed, authorities said, triggering widespread grief and calls for better safety measures across the country.
The government responded on Friday by banning all school excursions nationwide, as the tragedy sparked an outpouring of mourning and online demands for improved road and vehicle safety standards.
Police said preliminary investigations suggested the driver lost control of the vehicle, which then veered off the road and overturned after striking a large stone.
The bus, owned by King David Junior School in Kampala, was returning from an educational visit to the popular Sipi Falls when it crashed at Chekwatit village in Kapchorwa district, police said.
Alongside the 20 children who died, one adult also lost their life, while three adults and several children sustained injuries, officials said.
In response to Thursday's crash, Education Minister Chrysostom Muyingo has acted swiftly.
A government communications agency said he had ‘put a hold on all school trips and excursions, effective immediately and until further notice.’
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