KIKUUBE — Five people have been killed in a road crash involving a passenger taxi and a tractor along the Kizirafumbi-Kabaale road in Kikuube District.
The crash occurred at about 9:00pm on Wednesday at Kisambu Cell in Kikuube Town Council.
According to police, the accident involved a taxi, registration number UA 535BL, and a tractor whose registration number had not yet been established.
Preliminary information indicates that the taxi was carrying passengers from Kampala towards Kabaale Sub-county when it collided head-on with an oncoming tractor travelling towards Kizirafumbi.
All five occupants of the taxi died at the scene. The deceased comprised four male adults and one female adult, including the taxi driver. Their identities had not been established by the time of reporting.
Police retrieved the bodies and transported them to the Kikuube Health Centre IV mortuary, where they were awaiting postmortem examinations.
Julius Hakiza, the Albertine Region police spokesperson, said preliminary investigations pointed to reckless driving by the tractor driver as a possible cause of the crash.
Hakiza said the tractor driver fled the scene after the collision and took the tractor with him, prompting police to launch a search for him.
The wreckage of the taxi was towed to Kikuube Police Station as investigations into the circumstances surrounding the crash continued.
The Kikuube crash comes amid a series of fatal road accidents reported in different parts of the country in recent weeks.
On Wednesday, August 12, two people were killed and 10 others injured when a Fuso truck carrying market vendors overturned along the Lwabyata-Lwampanga (Zengebe) road in Lwakataba Village, Nakasongola District.
Earlier, on August 5, two people died and several others sustained critical injuries after a commuter taxi crashed at Kakira Junction along the Jinja-Iganga Highway.
On August 3, another 14 people were killed in a crash at Lwera Swamp in Kalungu District along the Kampala-Masaka Highway. The accident, which occurred at about 11:00pm at Kamunga Trading Centre, involved a Toyota Hiace taxi, registration number UA 662AQ, and a Sino truck, registration number UBS 040F, which was carrying sand.
The latest crashes add to concerns over road safety in Uganda.
While releasing the 2025 annual traffic statistics in April, Traffic and Safety Directorate director at the Uganda Police Force, Lawrence Niwabiine, said 26,044 road traffic crashes were reported in 2025, up from 25,107 in 2024, representing a 3.7% increase.
Of the crashes recorded in 2025, 4,602 were fatal, while 13,563 were classified as serious and 7,879 as minor.
