At least 38 people killed in Tanzanian bus collision, subsequent fire

At least 28 people are also injured in the accident between a bus and a minibus in the remote Kilimanjaro region.

At least 38 people have been killed in a collision between a bus and a minibus in Tanzania and a fire that engulfed both vehicles.

According to a statement from the presidency on Sunday, the crash, which occurred on Saturday evening in Sabasaba in the Kilimanjaro region, happened after one of the bus’s tyres was punctured, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle.

“A total of 38 people died in the crash, including two women,” the statement said.

“Due to the extent of the burns, 36 bodies remain unidentified.”

The nationalities of the victims were not immediately known.

Twenty-eight people were injured, six of whom were still in hospital for treatment, the presidency added.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan expressed “heartfelt condolences” to the bereaved families.

“May God grant peace to the souls of the departed and a quick recovery to the injured. May He comfort and strengthen their families during this difficult time,” Hassan said.

The president also called for stricter adherence to road safety as deadly vehicle crashes are frequent on Tanzania’s roads.

In recent years, the government has made repeated calls to curb road accidents, which continue to plague the country despite various road safety campaigns.

In a 2018 report by the World Health Organization, an estimated 13,000 to 19,000 people in the country were killed in traffic accidents in 2016, significantly higher than the government’s official toll of 3,256 people.