Braking system defect caused parliament bus fire – Police

Burnt Bus
A Parliamentary Bus attached to Ministry of Health that was carrying 25 COVID-19 patients from Kitgum to Kampala caught fire and burnt completely on Thursday afternoon at Koro Lajwatek village in Gulu City

Gulu, Uganda | URN | Police in Aswa region has said that the sudden fire that caught a Parliament bus that was transporting COVID-19 patients on Thursday was instigated by a jam in the braking system.

The Scania bus registration number UG-0391H, attached to the Ministry of Health was evacuating 25 patients from Kitgum district to the national treatment centres in Kampala. The patients were on Monday turned away from Gulu regional referral hospital due to space constraints.

But while on the journey, the bus caught fire near Koro trading centre in Omoro district about six kilometres from Gulu city along the Gulu – Kampala highway. Following the incident, the 25 patients have all been admitted at Gulu Regional Referral Hospital for further management amid limited space for new admissions, staff shortage and stock of essential drugs.

Patrick Jimmy Okema, the Aswa river region police spokesperson told this publication in an interview on Friday that an investigation into the incident by traffic police indicated that fault in the braking system triggered friction that caused heat and eventual ignition.

The burnt bus which was labelled 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference is one of the executive fleets of buses that Parliament of Uganda purchased to transport guests during the largest gathering of world legislators in September 2019, in Kampala.