Road accidents claim lives of 12
Kimwanga residents mill around a matatu that landed in a ditch, killing a girl, on December 28, 2016. The driver and conductor are at large. PHOTO | RAPHAEL WANJALA |
What you need to know:
- A 14-seater matatu ‘notorious for speeding’ was carrying more than 22 people
- The police officer called on road users to avoid alcohol.
Twelve people were killed in three separate accidents in Makueni and Bungoma counties on Wednesday.
Nine passengers died on the spot when a matatu plunged into a ditch at Kwa Solo on the Kikima-Tawa road, Makueni County.
Thirteen other passengers were injured, Mbooni West OCPD James Baraza said.
The police boss said the overloaded 14-seater matatu was also speeding when the accident occurred.
“This matatu is known for speeding,” Mr Bernard Mutua, a boda boda who witnessed the accident said.
The injured were taken to Mbooni and Tawa hospitals.
At Kimwanga Market on the Bungoma-Malaba road, a van rammed a stationary lorry, killing two people instantly.
“The lorry stalled on the road after developing mechanical problems,” Bungoma traffic base chief Galma Abdi said, adding that the truck driver, identified as George Owino, would be charged with obstruction and causing death.
“The driver did not place signs on the road to warn other motorists of the danger ahead,” Mr Abdi said.
The bodies were taken to the Bungoma County Referral Hospital mortuary.
In the same area, a matatu landed in a ditch, killing a child.
According a witness identified as Bernard Wanyonyi, the driver lost control when the steering wheel failed.
“The matatu was heading to Bungoma. Passengers told us that the driver struggled to control the vehicle when the steering wheel failed,” he said, adding that the girl may have been flung from the vehicle when it spun out of control before it landed on her.
The child’s age is yet to be established as police are still looking for survivors to record statements.
Mr Abdi said police officers were moving around private hospitals and clinics looking for survivors since the driver and conductor escaped soon after the tragedy.
In Nakuru, two drivers were seriously injured when their vehicles collided at Mburuku on the Nairobi highway on Tuesday night.
Regional traffic police coordinator Joseph Muthee said the private cars were heading in opposite directions when they collided.
Mr Muthee said the victims were taken to private hospitals in Nakuru instead of the level five hospital “because health workers are still on strike”.
He added that investigations into the cause of the collision had been launched.
The accident caused a heavy traffic jam on the highway for several hours.
The police officer called on road users to avoid alcohol.
