Kiley Wellendorf | News Editor

On Dec. 14, three Buena Vista University (BVU) recently graduated Rwandan students and one current Rwandan student were involved in a car crash. The group of nine individuals had attended a graduation and celebration for friends in Texas. The driver, identified as Vivence Bugilimfura, was hired by the group in hopes of taking them to and from the graduation. Upon leaving for their destination, Bugilimfura was intoxicated and lost control of the car.

Carol Williams, Director of Multicultural Engagement, heard about the accident that Monday afternoon.

“I started checking news sites and contacting other students I knew who were in the area,” Williams said.

During this accident, all nine passengers were ejected from the car and many faced a multitude of injuries. Christa Munezero, a current BVU student, knew everyone involved in the car accident.

“Two of them passed away; Lynker died on the spot and Sandra died two weeks after the accident. The rest in the car were seriously injured apart from Vivence,” Munezero said.

After hearing about the incident, BVU reached out to students, their friends, and families involved in order to offer support.

“As I was already planning to travel to Florida to visit family over the holiday, I was allowed to leave early so I could visit our students, and to carry care packages for them. I was able to visit with all of the students briefly, with the exception of one who had already been released from the hospital,” Williams said.

While the recovery has been fairly quick for those who were involved, all have continued to push through and stay strong during this hard time.

“Christella and Robert are the only ones that need more assistance than others because they are still in their braces. Many of them have actually fully recovered. In short, they are all doing well, and getting better emotionally apart from the driver, Vivence, who is facing legal issues,” Munezero said.

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons