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Mother and child die in Ngata road crash
An accident at Ngata where a trailer rammed into a 14-seater matatu, killing a mother and her child on the spot.
A woman and her child died while 10 others sustained serious injuries in an accident at the Ngata blackspot on the busy Nakuru–Eldoret highway.
The Thursday morning crash involved a 14-seater matatu ferrying passengers from Rongai town and a trailer heading to Nairobi from Eldoret.
Rongai Police Commander Cecilia Kemboi confirmed the accident and revealed that the deceased were a mother and her child.
“The trailer, which was transporting animal feeds from Eldoret, rammed into the matatu, killing the two on the spot,” said Ms Kemboi.
A trailer, whose driver was allegedly speeding, crashed into a stationary matatu killing two n the spot.
She added that the passengers who sustained serious injuries were rushed to Nakuru Level Five Hospital for treatment.
Police also disclosed that the woman who died had been escorting her child to school in Nakuru City when the accident occurred.
Preliminary police investigations established that the driver of the matatu had stopped to drop passengers when the trailer, whose driver was allegedly speeding, crashed into the stationary vehicle.
Other witnesses stated that the trailer driver appeared to lose control due to excessive speeding.
“The driver of the trailer was going too fast and that's why he couldn’t control the vehicle before it hit the matatu,” said Mary Kimani.
The bodies of the deceased were taken to the Nakuru Level Five Hospital mortuary. The wreckage of the matatu was towed to Ngata Police Station.
Ngata is one of several blackspots along the Eldoret–Nakuru–Nairobi highway, a notorious route known for frequent accidents.
Other dangerous stretches include Sobea–Salgaa, Salgaa–Migaa–Sachangwan–Kibunja, Sachangwan–Mau Summit, Kinungi–Karai, Naivasha–Gilgil and Mbaruk–Nakuru sections.
The Nairobi–Nakuru–Eldoret highway, which is awaiting a multibillion-shilling upgrade, has become a death trap in recent months, claiming numerous lives and leaving many injured.
The road serves as a vital corridor linking Nairobi to Western Kenya and landlocked countries, including Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, and Burundi, but has increasingly become a "tarmacked graveyard."
