Safety and Travel
Round up of August accidents
By Joseph Maina
Voi-Maungi highway accident
A 14-seater matatu collided
with a trailer on August 1 at Ndara
area, along the Voi-Maungu
highway.
Seven people perished and
fifteen others were injured in
the accident. Witnesses said the
matatu was overtaking another
vehicle when it collided head on
with the truck.
The matatu was also said
to have been overloaded at the
time of the accident, carrying
22 passengers instead of the
recommended 14.
Four people died on the spot,
while the others succumbed to
injuries while on the way to Voi
Referral Hospital.
Elsewhere, a key member of
the Jubilee Party campaign in
Meru County lost her mother in a
fatal road accident that claimed
eight lives on Saturday, August
12, at Ngon’yiarea on the Meru-
Nkubu road.
Ms Irene Kendi, who was
a member of the Mount Kenya
Foundation which campaigned
for President Uhuru Kenyatta, lost
her mother in the accident.
Ms Kendi has in the past
served as Deputy to the former
Students of Nairobi University
student leader Babu Owino.
Away from the roads, a boat
capsized at Kizingitini, off the
coast of Lamu, on Sunday, August
13, in an accident that claimed the
lives of 11 people.
Lamu East Constituency
ODM candidate in the August
elections Mr Shekue Kahale was
travelling in the boat with ten of
his relatives.
The politician and members
of his famil y were heading to
Manda airport to catch a flight to
Mombasa.
Mr Kahale’s wife, their four
children and his sister perished in
the accident, as well as 50-year
old Mohamed Shamti who was
the boat’s coxswain. Mr Kahale
was able to swim to safety and
was found by rescuers later on
in dry land in Ma junguni, Shanga
Island, suffering from shock.
And on August 16, a bus
belonging to Modern Coast
rammed onto a mkokoteni (hand-
drawn cart) at Kinoo area, along
the Nairobi-Nakuru highway.
Details of casualties could not be
immediately established.
The mkokoteni was reportedly
on the wrong side of the road at
the time of the accident.
Elsewhere, an early morning
accident involving two lorries on
August 18 claimed the lives of two
people at Salama junction along
the Nairobi-Mombasa highway.
Police said a lorry coming
from Mombasa tried to overtake
a fleet of cars when it collided
head on with an oncoming lorry.
Occupants of the Mombasa-
bound lorry died on the spot.
And the widow of former
Foreign Affairs Minister, Robert
Ouko died in a road accident that
occurred on the night of Monday,
August 21, after the vehicle she
was travelling in rolled at Kapsitet
junction, Muhoroni.
Mrs Chris tabelOuko, 76,
was returnin g to her Koru home
after attending the swearing-
in ceremony of newl y elected
K i s u m u C o u n t y G ove r n o r
Professor Anyang Nyong’o. Her
son was driving the vehicle.
The younger Ouko suffered
minor injuries while two other
passengers were reported to be
in critical condition.
And a matatu driver died
following an accident th at
occurred at Sofia trading centre
along HomaBay-Rongo Road.
The matatu driver, identified
as Odhiambo Owoch a, lost
control of his vehicle in an attempt
to avoid hitting a pedestrian.
Witnesses said the matatu was
moving at high speed at the
time of the fatal incident, which
occurred on the evening of
Tuesday, August 22.
A truck that was transporting
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)
to Nyeri rolled at KwaMuthike
black spot on the night of Friday,
August 25, causing a massive
traffic disruption that lasted for
more than 48 hours along the
busy Nairobi-Nyeri road.
The trailer lost control and
hit three oncoming vehicles at
Kambiti, a notorious accident
black spot in Makuyu, the
Standard reported.
The driver of the trailer and
his loader died. Police had to
divert traffic towards Murang’a-
Sagana road amid fears of a gas
leak.
Elsewhere, in Mukaa Sub-
County in Makueni County, a
middle aged man died on the spot
in an accident that took place in
the wee hours of the morning of
Friday, August 27, when his car hit
a trailer at Ngokomi area, along
the Nairobi-Mombasa highway.
Police said the man, who was
the only occupant of the Land
Cruiser Prado, miscalculated
his move when joining the busy
highway from a feeder road.
ozone toons
September 2017
13