Authorities at the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) in the Central Region have confirmed that only two out of the nine passengers who died in a Sunday dawn accident at Asuboi in the Eastern Region were its students.

Initial reports suggested that nine students died from the accident.

The school says information available to them indicates two of the 35 students who were onboard the bus are yet to be found and efforts are being made to trace their whereabouts.

“We are aware that 35 students were onboard that bus. We have been able to account for 31 who are alive,” the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the University, Ernest Azutiga, told host Alfred Ocansey on 3FM‘s Sunrise on Monday, March 14.

The accident involved a Hyundai universe commercial bus with registration number AK 324-22 and a 40-footer container loaded with wood.

The bus was transporting the students from Sunyani towards Accra but on reaching a section of the Asuboi road, the driver failed to observe traffic ahead. He was alleged to be sleeping.

Mr. Azutiga said “the university community is saddened by the accident involving a group of students who were traveling from the Sunyani area to our campus”.

“Nine out of the 31 got injured. Five of them were treated and discharged. Four others are on admission. We lost two of our students through the accident and we are still unable to account for the remaining two”.

He explained that “two of our students are lost as against nine which has been reported but we cannot account for the [other] two…we don’t know where they are”.

Official trip?

Asked whether the school sanctioned the trip from Sunyani, Mr. Azutiga explained that “it was an organized trip for students around the Sunyani area. They weren’t on our official trip; most of the students had gone home as a result of the UTAG strike and as a result of their numbers…they organized to come to campus. 35 of our students were on board and we are following the event to find out where the two are”.

“Some had also gone for the weekend and because they had some numbers, they decided to organize a trip.”

The PRO said “we sent down a team to go down to identify the victims and it was presumed that every other person on the bus was from the university”.