Tragedy: Couple perish in grisly accident along Mbale-Soroti highway.

 A fatal accident registered on Thursday along Mbale-Soroti Road killed a couple on the spot and left three others nursing critical injuries when a car in which they were travelling veered off the road and plunged into Namatala River on Thursday.

The Toyota Fielder vehicle of registration number UBF 719Z headed to Mbale from Soroti plunged into the river at a high speed killing 64-year-old Masaba James on spot while his wife; Masaba Judith, 50, was pronounced dead upon arrival at Mbale Regional Referral Hospital.

Elgon Regional Police Spokesperson SP Rogers Taitika confirmed the 1pm incident saying preliminary information indicates that the driver was speeding before losing control at the bridge of the river.

“The accident occurred at 1 pm today(Thursday) and it’s alleged that the driver Masaba Rogers driving a Toyota Fielder UBF 719Z from Soroti entering Mbale while speeding lost control at the bridge of Namatala river killing Masaba James,64, while his wife died on arrival at Mbale regional referral hospital,” SP Taitika said.

Police identified other victims who survived with serious injuries as; Masaba Rogers, Mawawi Treasure,16, and Mukaye Erena Destin,14.

Taitika says these are undergoing treatment at the hospital while the bodies of the deceased persons were subjected to postmortem examination for an autopsy report.

“The three victims who survived the accident are undergoing treatment at Mbale regional referral hospital while postmortem examination for the deceased persons is being handled at the same facility. We want to remind the drivers to avoid speeding which has claimed a number of people in the past,” Taitika noted.

Meanwhile, the wreckage of the Toyota Fielder was towed to Mbale divisional police headquarters as investigations into the actual cause of the accident continue.