King David Junior School is prioritising the emotional recovery of its learners and staff before reopening following the devastating road crash in Kapchorwa District that claimed 24 lives, including the school's director, Tadeo Ssekadde.
The school is expected to reopen in about two weeks after memorial activities, counselling sessions and other interventions aimed at helping the school community recover from the tragedy.
Headteacher Ssalongo Stanley Musagala said the situation at the school is gradually stabilising as pupils who had been admitted to hospital continue to recover, with some already discharged and reunited with their families.
"The situation is quite coming back to normal, the way it was in the past. Those who lost their lives were received by their parents, and those who were still in hospital are nursing their wounds, with some being discharged one by one depending on their condition," Musagala said.
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Preparations were underway at the home of the late director, Ssekadde, where relatives, friends, colleagues and members of the school community gathered ahead of his burial.
Musagala said the school will hold a memorial Mass in honour of the learners and the director who lost their lives in the crash. A team of teachers has also been assigned to visit bereaved families to offer condolences and psychosocial support.
"We know the learners are traumatised, but we need to counsel them so that they can come back to normal. We shall get counsellors to guide them in all possible ways and engage them in small activities to help them recover," he said.
He added that the remaining period before reopening will be dedicated to helping learners regain confidence through counselling and structured activities that will prepare them to resume their studies.
The school's recovery efforts come after one of Uganda's deadliest school transport disasters in recent years.
The crash occurred at Kaserem along the Kapchorwa-Mbale Road as learners were returning from an educational tour.
Traffic Police later confirmed that the death toll had risen to 24 after three more pupils succumbed to injuries while receiving treatment.
The tragedy prompted the government to indefinitely suspend all school study tours nationwide as authorities moved to strengthen enforcement of road safety regulations governing school transport.
The Ministries of Education and Sports, Works and Transport, and the Uganda Police Force have since announced measures aimed at improving the safety of learners during school travel.
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