P 171551Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY OUAGADOUGOU
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4355
INFO ECOWAS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS OUAGADOUGOU 001025 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CASC IV UV
SUBJECT: NO AMERICAN CASUALTIES IN BUS ACCIDENT 
 
¶1. SUMMARY:  Sixty-six people died in a traffic accident over the 
weekend in Burkina Faso. According to Burkinab authorities there 
are no American victims from the accident. END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. On November 15, 2008, 66 people died when a truck and a passenger 
bus collided and caught fire near the town of Boromo, 167 kilometers 
west of Ouagadougou.  The cause of the tragedy is still unclear. Out 
of the 66 people that died in the accident, the remains of 55 
individuals were unidentifiable due to severe burns.  All the 
victims were buried on site. However, the Gendarmerie in Boromo is 
still working on the identification of victims and notification of 
families.  Post will remain engaged and follow the results of the 
investigations. 
 
¶3. The 31 survivors of the accident have been admitted to medical 
centers in Boromo, Ouagadougou, and Bobo-Dioulasso.  Five of the 
survivors are said to be in critical condition. 
 
¶4. While there is no official manifest that lists the names of the 
passengers, post was informed by hospital and police officials that 
there were no expatriate passengers on the bus.  Newspaper reports 
suggest that most of the passengers were Burkinab and Ivorian. 
 
¶5. While authorities continue to investigate the cause of the 
accident, eye witness accounts reported in local newspapers suggest 
that the truck driver may have fallen asleep behind the wheel. 
Newspapers also quote the bus driver, who survived the accident, as 
saying that there were a total of 92 passengers on the bus. 
However, journalists noted that the bus had 75 seats. 
 
¶6. Post has sent letters of condolence to the Prime Minister and the 
Minister of Transportation. 
 
JACKSON