At least 21 people have died and five others sustained injuries after a passenger bus belonging to Maokoto Bus Services collided with a cargo truck at Kiponzero Junction along the Iringa-Mbeya highway in Tanzania’s Iringa Region.
According to a statement issued by the Iringa Regional Police on the morning of November 9, 2026, those killed include 10 men, nine women and two children.
Police said the five injured survivors have received medical treatment as authorities continue managing the aftermath of the tragedy and investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Preliminary reports indicate that the bus was travelling from Wasa Village in Iringa District to Iringa Municipality when the accident occurred.
Authorities further stated that initial findings point to a possible brake system failure, which is believed to have caused the driver to lose control of the bus before it collided with the oncoming truck.
Investigations into the crash are ongoing.
The latest tragedy comes barely a month after another devastating road disaster in Tanzania on October 9, 2026, when 28 people were killed after a passenger bus collided head-on with a timber-laden lorry and burst into flames at Mkambarani along the Morogoro-Dar es Salaam highway.
The back-to-back mass-casualty crashes have renewed concerns over road safety and vehicle maintenance on the country’s major transport corridors.
