Driver of the ill-fated Nyamira Express buses said to have been greeting prior to accident

Six people died and several were injured when these two Nyamira Express buses collided at Metamaiywa area along the Keroka-Sotik highway Wednesday. [PHOTO: ERIC ABUGA/STANDARD]

By ERIC ABUGA and NAFTAL MAKORI

NYAMIRA, KENYA: Six people died Wednesday afternoon on the spot and several others seriously injured in an accident involving two buses from the same company.

The Nyamira Express buses collided-head-on in Nyamira County’s Metamaiywa area, about 30 kilometres from Kisii town.

Bodies were strewn at the scene and among the dead was a driver of the bus that was ferrying passengers from Kisii to Nairobi.

Nyamira County’s Keroka residents rushed to the scene in Metamaiywa to rescue passengers who were trapped in the ill-fated buses.

They removed one passenger after another, while others thrown out of the buses due to the accident impact lay on the ground, writhing in pain.

One of the Nyamira Express buses that left Nairobi at 11am was heading to Nyamira town via Kisii, while the other was carrying passengers from Kisii to Nairobi.

“I have seen bodies without limbs. It is devastating,” said James Makini who lives near the scene of accident.

Mr Fred Ndubi who was walking to his home when the incident occurred, told The Standard that one of the bus drivers tried greeting his colleague in the other bus, when he lost control of the vehicle.

“He tried greeting his colleague by hooting first before leaving the steering to wave his hand through the window when the vehicle ripped off part of the other bus,” he said.

Ndubi said five seats of the other bus were ripped off, while that of the waving driver from Nairobi, saw his seat and that of two passengers behind damaged.

Nyanza Traffic Commandant Joshua Omukata said investigations were going on to ascertain what caused the accident.

“There is need for drivers on our roads to take maximum caution by adhering to traffic rules. No driver should use a mobile phone or do something that would distract his attention while driving,” he said.

Omukata said Public Service Vehicle drivers must also stick to 80 kilometres per hour as a maximum speed limit when using the roads.