KENYA: 27 Dead Along Mombasa-Nairobi Highway In Grisly Road Accident, And more before

27 people have been confirmed dead following head on collision between Malindi bound bus and a truck at Kambu along Mombasa-Nairobi highway. The accident happened in the early morning hours around 2a.m at kambu along Mombasa-Nairobi Highway.

Area OCPD Leonard Kimaiyo, the accident involved a bus that was bound to Malindi belonging to Buscar Company and oil tanker that was headed to Nairobi from Mombasa.

The casualties have been taken to makindu sub_county hospital and the bodies ferried to the Makindu hospital mortuary.

It was a very bad head-on collision. Twenty seven passengers have been killed, a police officer said.

Eldoret: 2 people killed when a truck rammed onto vehicles after breaks failed

Two people died on the spot, six in critical condition while seven escaped with slight injuries after a truck lost control and rammed into several vehicles in Eldoret. The 9.00PM incident occurred near the Brookside depot along the Eldoret- Kapsabet road less than a kilometre from the central business district.

Eye witnesses say the truck that was carrying cement and other building material was headed to Eldoret from Kapsabet when it's brakes failed causing the driver to hit vehicles on its way down the steep section of the road.

Two people died on the spot, six in critical condition while seven escaped with slight injuries after a truck lost control and rammed into several vehicles in Eldoret. The 9.00PM incident occurred near the Brookside depot along the Eldoret- Kapsabet road less than a kilometre from the central business district.

It was reported that the lorry first hit an oncoming town service matatu that was headed to Langas before hitting a probox which hit a motorbike before plunging to the roadside. The motorcycle rider reportedly died on the spot with those in the probox and matatu sustaining serious injuries.

Traffic police from Eldoret who arrived at the scene immediately confirmed the death of two people, adding that out of the injured, six were critical while seven had slight injuries. The injured were taken to the nearby Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital where they are being treated.

Mombasa: Five people killed when a bus collides head on with a truck

Five people were Wednesday morning killed after a Chania Cool bus collided head on with a truck near Salama along the Mombasa-Nairobi Highway. Police say at least 20 other passengers were injured in the 1 am incident.

According to police, the lorry was overtaking when it collided with the bus that was headed for Mombasa. “The lorry driver is believed to have miscalculated the distance when he decided to overtake at a hilly place while the bus was moving at high speed.

Among the dead was the bus driver,” said traffic commandant Jacinta Kinyua. Ms Kinyua said such errors are causing many deaths. The injured are admitted in various hospitals in Makindu and Machakos. The accident caused a huge traffic jam for hours before the scene was cleared. This is the latest accident to happen in the country increasing the toll further. Police have called for caution from driver to avoid such incidents.

Nine killed in Salgaa accidents

Nine people died in two separate road accidents in Salgaa along the Nakuru-Eldoret highway. In the first incident, seven people died on the spot after the driver of a speeding trailer lost control and rammed a matatu near Ngata Bridge on Sunday. Both the driver of the matatu and of the trailer were among those who died on the spot.

The matatu that was headed to Eldoret had 11 passengers on board while the lorry heading to Nakuru had two passengers. According to witnesses, the accident occurred after the lorry swerved off the road as its driver tried to avoid hitting a fuel tanker from behind. In the process, the driver rammed the matatu from the right side.

The accident occurred a few hours after a 34-seater minibus rammed a personal car at Greensteds area along the Nakuru-Nairobi Highway, killing two people. Witnesses said the driver of the private car, who died on the spot, was attempting to overtake when the vehicle was hit from its side by the bus and rolled several times. The survivors were rushed to St Mary’s Hospital in Gilgil and bodies transported to Umash Funeral home.

At Ngata, Fredrick Cherogony, whose house is situated near the scene of the accident, said he was heading home with his friends when he saw the speeding lorry almost hitting a trailer that was headed in the same direction. Serious Injuries “It looked like the two drivers were challenging each other as they descended the long stretch at a curved section of the road,” said the witness.

He said the lorry driver lost control of the vehicle while descending the hilly section of the road and hit the matatu before dragging it off the tarmac road, then landed on it. Cherogony said it was likely the lorry driver was freewheeling while descending, hence could not control the vehicle. Five people in the matatu who escaped with serious injuries were rushed to Nakuru County Level Five General Hospital while bodies were moved to Nakuru County public mortuary.

At the scene, blood-stained luggage including personal effects were strewn all over. The wreckages of the vehicles were towed to Nakuru Central Police Station. Regional Traffic Enforcement Officer Mary Omari arrived at the scene but declined to talk to the media amid protests from residents, who accused the traffic department in the region of engaging in corrupt activities.

A woman, who was travelling in the lorry but survived, said the truck driver was sick and had sought treatment along the highway. “I saw him take some tablets and after inquiring what the problem was, he told me he was feeling unwell. But before the accident occurred, I saw him straining a lot,” said the woman, who escaped with serious cuts on her face.

She said the only thing she remembered seeing at the scene of the crash were bodies strewn all over.

Five dead in Makueni County

Five people died and several others seriously injured in yet another grisly accident on the Wote –Makindu road in Makueni County. Four of the Wednesday evening crash died on the spot while the fifth one succumbed to injuries on his way to Makueni Level Five hospital.

Makueni OCPD Benjamin Onsongo confirmed the accident and said police have launched investigation into the Wednesday evening crash. The police chief said eight victims are recuperating At the Makueni Level Five referral hospital where they were admitted with multiple injuries. The bodies of the dead were removed to the hospital's mortuary.

He said the 14 seater Nissan matatu was heading to Makindu from Wote town when the accident occurred at about 6.00pm. Onsogo told reporters that driver of the ill-fated matatu lost its control forcing it to roll several times near Maseka Bridge. Eye witnesses said the matatu was over speeding at the time of the crash which occurred at a sharp cornered section of the road.

Five relatives killed in car crash in Kiambu

A family in Gatundu South is still struggling to come to terms with a tragic accident that killed five relatives. And yesterday, news that the only survivor in the Ndenderu accident in Kiambu had succumbed to his injuries hit them hard.

Two brothers Daniel Kinyanjui, 42, Peter Ndai,38, their sister-in-law and her nine-year old daughter died on the spot when the accident occurred last week.

Their brother, Richard Kibingi, who was the driver of the car they were travelling in on the fateful day survived though with serious injuries. He, however, succumbed to his injuries on Sunday at the Kenyatta National Hospital where he was undergoing treatment. The accident occurred after the driver of a lorry carrying sand lost control after the brakes failed and rammed into about 10 cars. Mr Kibingi’s wife and daughter died on the spot.

Their two-year-old son, Alvis Kamau, however, was lucky and survived. The family was travelling back to Nairobi from Nyahururu where they had gone to visit their eldest brother. When The Standard visited their home in Kahenia, Gatundu South, the family was still in shock trying to come to terms with the tragic loss.

The mother of the deceased brothers, Elizabeth Wamaitha, 80, was in shock as she struggled to come to terms with the tragedy that had befallen her family. However, This is not the first shocking death the family has to deal with. The mother of 10 said in 1993 the family lost their daughter after she was poisoned. Five years later, her son died after he was hit by a vehicle as he crossed the road near Gatundu town.

And as fate would have it, two of her daughters also died after falling ill, years later. With only three children out of the 10 remaining, Ms Wamaitha said the news of her children’s death had shocked her beyond words, adding that she has been asking herself why calamity keeps dogging her family. “There is nothing that I can say concerning my children’s death. It is God’s will, which we have accepted and cannot question.

He knows better why it had to happen like that,” she said amid tears. Wamaitha said they had hoped Kibingi would recover from his injuries. She is appealing for help in bringing up the children who have been left behind by her departed sons.

5 dead in Salgaa accident

A dark cloud engulfed Iruri Village in Nyeri County during the burial of five out of seven family members who perished in a grisly road accident along the Nakuru-Eldoret Highway last Friday. In an emotional ceremony, Charles Kibira 62, his oldest son Gerald Munyi 36, his son's wife Gladys Mukuhi, 27, their Daughter Anne Wambui, 7, and their two year-old son Maina Munyi were laid to rest in their ancestral home in Nyeri.

Relatives, neighbours, friends and government representatives came togetherness to give the departed souls a dignified send-off even as mourned for the big loss. 'We are in pain and hoping this is the last time Kenyans are losing their lives at this (Salgaa black) spot, the President should do something to ease our sufferings," Charles Otieno said, a representative of the family's friends from Kitale lamented.

Otieno observed that it was painful for a family to lose such a great number in a single day urging the government to intervene. "Losing family members in a single day is not normal, let the death of Kibira and his family be a wakeup call to the government to do something about rising road accidents," he said. Their burial came after two of the seven who died in the accident were laid to rest at their Molo home, Nakuru County on Thursday July 21.

Thousands of mourners travelled from as far as Kitale and Trans Nzoia in Western Kenya to join their compatriots from Central Kenya to bid fare well to the victim. The five died after their vehicle collided head-on with a truck at the notorious Salgaa black spot on the previous Friday night. Caskets bearing the remains of the departed relatives were placed at a tent erected in the middle of Iruri Primary school playing field, where an interdenominational service was conducted.

On the coffin, was by a cross bearing the names of the victims, their date of birth and when they died, starting with Kibira, his son, daughter in- law and his two grandchildren. Before his death Kibira had plied the route for over 40 years and was on his way back from Nyeri where he had attended a relative's burial. Mathira MP Peter Weru asked the government to consider constructing a dual carriage at Salgaa and other black spots in the country in order to save lives.

"There are answers to all black spot. Roads can be redesigned and Police need their role and responsibilities," Weru observed. The MP warned traffic police officers and the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) who take bribes from rogue drivers at the expense of road users. He further promised to table a motion in parliament next week to discuss about the construction of a dual carriage at the site.

Nakuru county Woman Representative Mary Mbugua said the parliamentary committee on energy to which she was a member had recommended for a dual carriage to be put up at Salgaa. She however asked the drivers to be careful and cautioned drivers against careless driving. "Trucks will use their own lane as other vehicles use different ones," the MP said.

Trans Nzoia Deputy county commissioner Albert Mwalwa advised drivers to be careful while on the road and give way to other motorists instead of insisting they are on their right side. "Let us stop insisting on our right of way and instead let us use our common sense because in case of an accident we all perish," Albert Mwalwa explained.

Five injured in Murang'a after car runs into market

Five people suffered fractured limbs in Murang'a after a saloon car rammed on them after it lost control at Mukuyu market. The vehicle loaded with onions destined to the market was reported to have lost control after its brakes failed as the driver struggled to join Murang'a-Nairobi highway. Business at the busy market came to stand still as traders abandoned their schedules to take the injured to Murang'a district hospital for treatment.

The residents called on the police to order removal of the lorries that have remained parked along the road reserves blaming them for the accident. Peter Kamau a resident said the trucks are a major obstruction to other road users as they block the visibility of the highway. Mukuyu-Kahuro junction, he said has remained a challenge to many of the motorists due to parking of trucks awaiting to be hired to transport building materials.

"The accident could have been avoided but the five were unable to escape due to the presence of the trucks in the road reserves," said Kamau. Murang'a traffic base commander Bernard Kurgat said the five suffered serious wounds and fractured limbs following the accident. "The five are responding well to treatment at Murang'a district hospital.

People while walking along the road should be cautious as brakes fails and could results into accidents," said Kurgat. The wreckage of the vehicle was towed to Murang'a police station to enable police conduct investigations.

Seven family members killed in Salgaa returning from a burial

A family had just buried one of their own. A man, his son, daughter, daughter-in-law and three grandchildren were on their way home to Kitale after attending the burial of a relative in Nyeri County. But the seven died when their vehicle collided with a truck head-on at Sobea on the Nakuru-Eldoret highway on Friday night. The tragic end of their journey threw relatives in deeper grief.

Family and friends at home and at the Nakuru Referral Hospital mortuary where their bodies are lying were in tears and shock. Those who perished were Charles Munyi, 60, (father), Gerald Munyi (son), Alice Muthoni (daughter) Gladys Mukuhe (daughter-in-law), Joe Maina, 6, Myles Ndung’u, 2 and another grandchild. The family members are among 16 people killed in two accidents on the same night. Nine people were burnt to death when a Nissan matatu they were travelling in was involved in a grisly accident on the Mai Mahiu-Narok road.

According to a relative, Peter Wanjau, the victims of the Sobea crash were headed to Kitale after attending the burial of their kin in Nyeri when the accident occurred a few minutes past 1am. Two of the grandchildren inside the extensively damaged car belonged to the man’s son, while his daughter had one child. The seven died on the spot, while the truck’s occupants escaped with minor injuries. “I was headed to Nairobi when I came across the accident.

The small car’s number plate was familiar and I had to cut short my journey when I realised all the people I knew had gone forever,” Wanjau said outside the mortuary. A witness, Ali Mohammed, said after the collision, a bus headed the same direction with the small car rammed it from behind, pushing it further into the lorry. “The small car was dragged for about 40m from the point of impact before the heavy truck landed on it, killing all the occupants,” said Mohammed.

He said the driver of the ill-fated Toyota 110 car was trying to overtake several vehicles along a stretch climbing lane when the accident occurred. The bodies were taken to Nakuru County Hospital mortuary, while the vehicles were towed to Salgaa Police Station. Unconfirmed number of injured passengers were taken to Rift Valley Provincial Hospital in Nakuru for treatment. In Machinjoni estate on the outskirts of Kitale town, Trans Nzoia County, relatives and neighbours tried to come to terms with the tragedy.

The family background is in Karatina, Nyeri County, but they reside in Kitale. Anna Wambui, 50, whose husband, two children, a daughter-in-law and three grandchildren perished, could not control her tears when the news were broken to her yesterday morning. Simon Wamwere, a relative, said they were shocked of the sudden turn of events, which has left the entire family desolate. “The family was very humble and hardworking. The son who perished was a renowned electrician in Kitale town and a breadwinner to the family,” said Wamwere.

He said he was informed of the tragedy at around 2am while in Bungoma and he called some of the relatives in Nakuru to ascertain if indeed it was true. “As a family, we are in deep loss since almost the entire family has perished,” he said as tears rolled down his cheeks. The widow could not speak and was kept indoors where her wails could be heard from the outside, as neighbours made frantic efforts to comfort her. Relatives and friends milled the mortuary in Nakuru to view the badly mutilated bodies.

Speaking on behalf of the family, Esther Wangare, Munyi’s daughter, said it is painful to have lost seven members in the accident. “It is so painful. I lack words to express my feeling,” said Wangare. She did not have the courage to view the bodies. Wangare, who lives in Kikuyu town, said she received a phone call from her sister Alice Muthoni at 5pm on Friday, informing her that they had begun their journey back to Kitale.

However, at around 8.30pm, she received another call informing her that they had been involved in a mishap at Nyahururu town and had sustained slight injuries but were proceeding with the journey. “My sister told me that while at Nyahururu, a vehicle had hit theirs though they were all fine apart from her who had a slight injury,” recalled Wangare.

At 4am, she received a call from her close family friend telling her that her family members had been involved in a road accident at Salgaa. She later learnt that all her seven family members had died. Joseph Mbuthia, could not believe he lost her loving wife Muthoni and a two-year-old son to the accident. “I have lost a lover, a friend, a wife who made my life comfortable.

I do not know how life will be by this instant turn of events,” he said. Mbuthia said he received information from a friend that his wife and son had died. The two had been married for 10 years and have three children.

Three children and their grandfather die in crash

Twice a week, three children would eagerly wait by the sides of the busy Makutano-Embu road to push their grandfather home. The bond between the two doting boys and a girl aged between 7 and 10 and their wheelchair-bound grandfather, 60, had been nurtured over the last three years. But on Saturday, their journey came to a crashing end.

Yesterday, relatives of the old man, Jackson Mbutu, recounted how the four were mowed down by a speeding pick-up truck that veered off the road. There was eerie silence in the family’s Kirwara home in Kirinyaga County as they contemplated the consequences of the horrific road crash.

After hitting the four, the vehicle’s driver took off but was cornered by boda boda operators some two kilometres away. He, however, managed to escape and the boda boda operators and residents burnt his vehicle to ashes. Unique Bond The three children, Brian Kinyanjui (10), Miriam Wambui (9) and Jackson Mbutu Junior (7) were pushing their grandfather in his wheelchair along the busy road as they had done routinely for three years.

They were all firstborns of Mbutu’s three children, who had two children each. Mbutu, a cobbler at Makutano market, lived some 500 metres from the main road near Wamumu Approved School.

He would visit the market twice a week on market day to serve his customers. Nehemiah Mutugi, Jackson Mbutu Junior’s father, was yesterday lost in grief after losing his father and his first-born son. “Every Wednesday and Saturday — which are Makutano market days — my father would wheel himself to the market because it was the best time to cater to his clients,” he said.

Mutugi, who works as a boda boda operator at the market, said his son adored his grandfather, who often offered them a ride on the back of his tricycle wheelchair. “As a child, my father used to carry me on his tricycle wheelchair and when my son and his cousins were old enough, they too started enjoyed riding on the wheelchair and pushing their grandfather around,” said Mutugi.
For Beatrice Wamiru, 48, the loss of her husband and grandchildren has left her numb and disoriented.

During their 30 years of marriage, Mbutu was the sole breadwinner and her closest friend. “When we met in 1986, he wooed me with his cheerful disposition. He was confined to a wheelchair after he contracted polio in childhood but his physical condition did not deter him from enjoying life,” said Wamiru. During the interview, Wamiru was overcome by grief.

She leaned on her children for support, unable to comprehend the loss she has to endure. “My grandchildren were very close to their grandfather. Everyday, they came to visit him and help him feed the cows or assist with household chores,” said Wamiru. Diana Njeri, Miriam Wambui’s mother was in utter shock. She said her daughter, nephews and grandfather were inseparable.

“When they were younger, they would escort him to Makutano market and as they grew older, they often walked longer distances to ensure he was able to navigate the bumpy road from Makutano to our home,” said Njeri. “It was a unique and natural bond between grandparent and grandchildren,” said a mourning Mutugi. Playful Son Another grieving parent, Faith Wangari, Brian Kinyanjui’s mother, said her son was always playful and cheerful.

“He used to leave school and rush straight to his grandparents’ home to play with his cousins. We raised them as one family and now we have lost all of them at once,” said Wangari. On Saturday evening as the children had always done, they met their grandfather wheeling himself home. Upon reaching a steep hill near the Wamumu section of the highway, all the three children huddled together to help push their grandfather up.

It was then that the truck hit them. While the three children died on the spot, Mbutu was rushed to Kerugoya Level 5 Hospital, where he passed away. “After my father was pronounced dead, the same ambulance that had taken him there took the body to the Mwea Mission Hospital Mortuary, where the bodies of his grandchildren lay,” narrated a sobbing Mutugi. Mwea East OCPD Titus Yoma described the scene of the accident as a black spot.

The family has started making arrangements for burials of their four loved ones. The truck driver, David Ndung’u, was arrested and charged in a Wang’uru Court with dangerous driving and causing the death of the four family members. He was released on a Sh500,000 bond.

Man, child burnt to death

Two people were Saturday burnt to death in two separate fire incidences in Kisumu. In the first incident, a five-year baby was burnt to death when their grass-thatched house caught fire in Wawidhi village, Nyando Sub-County. Kisumu Police Commander Titus Yoma said the boy's parents were attending a funeral in a neighbouring home and had lit a tin lamp which started the fire.

Efforts by residents to put out the 2am fire were futile. And in Kisumu's Ondiek estate, quick response by residents and the fire brigade to stop a raging inferno ignited by a stove from consuming up to five houses and several iron sheet shanties failed. The owner of the single-roomed shanty in which the fire is believed to have started died in the 1am incident.

Driver runs over his boss

A leading Naivasha farmer is fighting for his life in a private hospital after one of his farm drivers turned against him and hit him using a tractor after a quarrel. The farmer had to be airlifted to Nairobi for specialized treatment after the incident which left other workers in shock.

A witness who declined to be named said that the farm manager stumbled on one of his drivers siphoning fuel from a truck.

"The driver was ordered to drive the truck back to the office for disciplinary action but he ended up smashing the farmer against his vehicle before fleeing from the scene," he said. A senior police officer confirmed the incident adding that the farmer was in serious but stable condition while a manhunt for the fleeing driver had been launched.

"The driver of the tractor is still at large after running over his boss who is admitted in a private hospital suffering from head and leg injuries," said the officer. Meanwhile, Naivasha sub-committee security committee has identified Nyandarua and Western Kenya as the main source of bhang that is been sold in the region.

This came as six suspects including two women said to be the main suppliers of the narcotics were arrested after a week-long hunt. The six were found by AP officers with tens of rolls bhang in Kayole estate bringing to 12 the number of suspects arrested by security officers selling the drug in a span of two weeks.

According to Naivasha sub-county commissioner Isaac Masinde they had identified Aberdare forest in Nyandarua and Western Kenya as the main source of the drug. Masinde said that the drug was finding its way into some of the schools leading to the current unrest where some learning institutions had been burnt down.

"We have managed to arrest six of the main suppliers of drugs in the sub-county and the operation will continue until all the peddlers are put behind bars," he said. Masinde identified Kihoto, Kayole and Kabati as the main estates in Naivasha where the drug was been sold mainly by youths.

On his part, the Naivasha AP boss John Mukunya praised his officers for the arrest adding that it would be spread to other estates. "We are issuing a warning to all those involved in this illegal trade that their days are numbered and it's a matter of day before we catch up with them," he said.

Two die in a grisly Kisumu accident

Two people died on the spot while three others were critically injured in a road accident along the Kisumu-Kakamega road Tuesday morning. The accident involved a truck that was headed towards Kisumu town, a pick-up and a motorcycle that was headed in the opposite direction. Eye witnesses said the accident occurred after the driver of the lorry that was descending down the hill lost control of the vehicle and hit the motorcycle before ramming into the oncoming pick up.

"The driver of the truck which was carrying sand was driving at a high speed before he lost control of the vehicle," a witness told the Standard. Regional Traffic and Reinforcement Officer Andrew Naibei confirmed that the motorcyclist and a pedestrian perished on the spot. Naibei noted that among the injured who included the driver of the truck, his turn boy and the driver of the pickup truck were rushed to Jaramogi Oginga Teaching and Referral Hospital.

"This area is a black spot and we are urging drivers to be cautious when plying the route," said Naibei. He noted that the state of the road which is narrow and is still under construction could have contributed to the accident. "This road is still not in a good condition and drivers may be tempted to engage the free gear," he said. He urged all road users to be careful while using the roads and vowed to arrest and bring to book errant road users.

"We will arrest drivers who are not wearing seat belts and also riders who do not have reflective jackets and helmets," added Naibei. Area residents accused the truck drivers playing the route of being careless and putting the lives of many people at risk. "We have had a big problem with the truck drivers and this is the second accident in barely a week involving one of the trucks carrying sand," said Gladys Atieno, a resident.

They urged the police to set up a road block at the place that is deemed to be a black spot to monitor vehicles plying the route in order to stop road carnage.

1,600 lives lost in road accidents in last six months

More than 1,602 people have died in road accidents in the last six months, the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has said. These are 89 more lives lost compared to the same period last year. As at July 1, new data by NTSA shows, 1,585 people had died in road accidents, reflecting a 5.7 per cent rise from the 1,499 who died in the same period last year.

The number of those injured has also increased by 1,537 to 7,160. Of these, 2,606 sustained serious injuries while 2,969 had slight injuries. Pedestrians were the most affected with 615 deaths and 584 serious injuries. Some 193 drivers also died during this period, while 293 sustained serious injuries, 354 passengers died while 1,151 sustained serious injuries.

Some 106 pillion passengers (those on bicycles and motorbikes) were also among the dead, with 234 sustaining serious injuries. Some 37 cyclists and 283 motorcyclists respectively died in the same period, while some 41 cyclists and 321 motorcyclists were reported as seriously injured. "We blame these incidents on drunken driving, speeding and dangerous overtaking," NTSA Director General Francis Meja said while unveiling new regulations on drink driving on Monday.

These statistics come days after the ill-fated accident along the Kisii-Kilgoris road that marked the end of eight lives, among them six university students in their early 20s. According to an eye witness, the students might have been drunk (as bottles of assorted alcohol were found scattered at the scene) and they were speeding.

As part of the new measures unveiled by NTSA, motorists will now be issued with new generation driving licences that are electronically connected to insurers. Other steps taken include having insurers deny cover to un-inspected or unroadworthy vehicles.