Eighteen people are reported to have died in two separate road accidents on Wednesday.
In the first incident, 15 people were killed in a road accident at Kizingi, on the Mombasa-Malindi Highway. Six employees of the Kilifi County government are among the victims.
County officials said their colleagues died when a minibus heading to Kilifi from Malindi was involved in a head-on collision with a bus near Malindi town
In another accident, three people died when a cane tractor overturned at Kasagam on the Kisumu-Nairobi road.
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LOST CONTROL OF VEHICLE
Witnesses said the driver of the tractor was speeding while approaching the flyover before he lost control of the vehicle.
The truck overturned and hit two cars that were being washed by the roadside.
Two of those who died on the spot were aboard the truck while a third person died on the way to the hospital. They are yet to be identified.
In the Coast accident, it took rescuers almost an hour to extract bodies and the injured from the wreckage of the two vehicles.
An early morning shower hampered the rescue mission.
Some passengers died while struggling to get out of the mangled minibus.
Others could be heard crying for help but the first responders, mostly villagers, we're unable to rescue them.
“Please don’t let me die,” a woman who was trapped under the minibus wailed as villagers and other motorists tried to get her out.
She died at the scene about 10 minutes later.
Kutswa Olaka, the Kilifi county commissioner said 14 other passengers were seriously injured in the road accident that happened at about 7 am.
The police described it as one of the worst accidents in the area in recent history. Most of the victims were going to work or markets.
Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi while condoling with those who lost their loved ones said the county government had lost six members of staff.
“It pains me to announce that some travellers confirmed dead and injured are members of staff in the county government of Kilifi,” said Kingi in a statement last evening.
“They were from Malindi town and were going to going to work in Kilifi town.”
The bus belonging to Muhsin Bus Company was heading to Garissa from Mombasa and the minibus belonging to Sabaki Travellers Sacco was heading to Mombasa.
Olaka blamed the contractor of the road for digging trenches on the sides, making it very narrow.
He added that the bus had a tyre burst which made the driver lose control of the vehicle, leading to a head-on collision with the oncoming minibus.
“We have lost 15 people and 14 others are admitted at Malindi sub-County hospital and other hospitals in critical condition.
“One person died in hospital,” he said.
Later, Coast region traffic police commander Peter Maina told Standard Digital the bus hit the minibus as it tried to overtake another vehicle.
He said some passengers were thrown out through the windows into a ditch before the vehicles fell on them.
[Additional reporting by Kepher Otieno]
