Drivers fake tanker accidents, say TLB, police

By Patrick Beja

The Transport Licensing Board (TLB) and police say most oil tanker accidents are stage-managed.

The two Government agencies say the accidents have all to do with fuel siphoning because fuel spilled at accident scenes is usually less than the original load of the tankers.

TLB national chairman Wilfred ole Legei and Coast Provincial Traffic Enforcement Officer Shem Mganda said the Motor Vehicle Inspection Unit would soon release a comprehensive report on why there was an increase in cases of overturned tankers, especially between Nakuru and Western Kenya.

They were speaking at Aga Khan Jubilee Hall in Mombasa during a TLB licensing forum.

Drivers siphon fuel

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"The information we have indicates that tanker drivers siphon fuel and then overturn the vehicles as a cover up. The spilled oil is less than the amount loaded into the vehicles initially," Mganda said.

He advised Kenyans to stop scrambling for fuel when tankers overturn, since some of them carry dangerous chemicals.

In January, more than 100 people were burned to death as they siphoned petrol from a tanker that overturned at Sachang’wan, Molo.

The driver of the tanker had allegedly gone for a short call when it caught fire in unclear circumstances.