(dpa) According to the authorities, at least 40 people died and 87 were injured in a serious traffic accident in Senegal. The country’s president ordered a three-day national mourning on Sunday. “I am deeply saddened by today’s tragic traffic accident in Gniby,” wrote Macky Sall on Twitter on Sunday morning. He expressed his condolences to the families of those affected.
Je suis profondément attristé par le tragique accident routier de ce jour, à Gniby, occasionnant 40 morts et de nombreux blessés graves. J’adresse mes condoléances émues aux familles des victims et souhaite promptly rétablissement aux blessings.
— Macky Sall (@Macky_Sall) January 8, 2023
Senegalese Transport Minister Mansour Faye traveled to the scene of the accident in the Kaffrine region of central Senegal on Sunday afternoon. He spoke on national television of 40 people killed and 87 injured.
National mourning should apply in the West African coastal country from Monday, Sall wrote in another tweet. There should also be a ministerial meeting to discuss road safety. According to a local accident helper, two buses, each with 70 seats, collided early on Sunday morning after a tire burst on one vehicle.