Police in Jinja are investigating a fatal train accident in which a pedestrian, Habiba Nabirye, was killed after being run over by a cargo train on Wednesday evening.
The accident happened at around 5:30 pm in Walukuba’s Railway Zone, when a train transporting four wagons of coils from Jinja Pier to Jinja City railway station struck the victim as she walked along the tracks.
According to Kiira Regional Police Spokesperson SP James Mubi, the train’s driver, Stephen Kusaba, 48, repeatedly sounded warning signals in vain.
“The train had four wagons loaded with coils and collided with a pedestrian identified as Habiba Nabirye, who was walking on the railway line. The train engineer excessively hooted but Nabirye could not adhere to the hooting signals,” Mubi said.
Police secured the scene, recorded statements from eyewitnesses, and later transferred the body to Jinja Regional Referral Hospital mortuary for postmortem. Investigations are underway to determine the exact circumstances that led to the crash.
Mubi cautioned members of the public against negligence near railway lines.
“There is a saying that the train cannot knock someone but it is someone who knocks the train. This is because it has one designated route which it uses, and we are the ones to give way to it and not otherwise,” he emphasized.
Eyewitnesses suggested Nabirye may have been wearing earphones, which could have prevented her from hearing the warnings.
One resident shared on social media: “This is my neighbor’s daughter who had put in earphones, making it hard for her to hear the train hooting. She’s being buried today (Thursday). The body is beyond recognition, and this is very unfortunate. MHSRIP.”