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Pader, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Two people died on Monday afternoon while 13 others were left critically injured after a taxi they were travelling in overturned along Gulu-Kitgum highway.
The incident involving a taxi registration number UBJ 164A, happened at around 2pm, about five kilometers from Laguti trading center in Laguti sub county, Pader district.
The ill-fated taxi had reportedly been used to rescue stranded passengers in Paicho sub county, Gulu district after a taxi they earlier boarded from Gulu city broke down en route to Kitgum municipality.
Police identified one of the deceased as Akena.
Richard Onyegiu, an eyewitness told URN in an interview that the fatal crash occurred at Ora-lakwal bridge after one of the taxi’s tyres burst.
According to Onyegiu, the vehicle overturned for about 30 to 40 meters from the point the tyre burst. He says the taxi driver and one passenger died on the spot.
Tai Ramadan, the Pader District Police Commander confirmed the incident in a telephone interview with URN.
He identified one of the deceased only as Akena, the driver of the taxi that earlier broke down in Gulu district. Tai says the deceased had got a lift after his vehicle broke down.
According to Tai, the driver of the ill-fated taxi has since gone into hiding, adding that police are hunting for him. He attributes the incident to reckless driving, saying the driver was reportedly driving very fast.
He says the bodies of the deceased and the injured persons including a female juvenile were transported to Kitgum General Hospital.
Early last month, seven people were critically injured after a taxi they were travelling in from Gulu to Kitgum rammed into a stationed truck at Wii-ogwang village in Gemonyot Parish, Acholi Bur sub-county in Pader district.
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