Sharjah24 - AFP: Twenty-four people, including four children, died Wednesday when a bus crashed in northern Senegal, the interior minister announced in a press conference Wednesday afternoon at the accident site.
Antoine Felix Abdoulaye Diome said that 54 people were injured in the accident, which happened at 7:40 am (0740 GMT) near the village of Dielerlou Syll, in Louga region.
Earlier, President Macky Sall had put the death toll at 23.
In the semi-arid landscape of the accident site, the carcass of the bus could be seen lying on the side of the road with the passengers' belongings scattered around it, an AFP journalist reported.
The bus had been coming from a town in the north of the country and was "overcrowded" with 76 people on board, despite having a 60-person capacity, the minister said.
Speaking at the press conference, a member of the fire brigade said the bus had skidded and then overturned, with all four tyres in the air.
The injured were evacuated to hospitals in the town of Louga and the city of Saint-Louis, the minister added.
In January, 19 people were killed and 24 injured in a collision in the same area, near Louga.
The previous week, around 40 people died in a bus collision in the centre of Senegal.
That tragedy, on January 8, prompted a wave of criticism against authorities over the frequency of accidents on Senegal's roads, and the lack of action taken to prevent them.
The government responded by announcing a long list of measures, including a ban on overnight bus journeys. But transport professionals said that many of the measures were unrealistic.
"We must continue to work much harder on certain measures", the minister said Wednesday, pointing to the fact that the bus had been overcrowded.
Across many countries in Africa, dilapidated vehicles, reckless driving and corrupt law-enforcement officials all contribute to tragedies on the road.
For an optimal experience, please
