One person died on the spot while ten others escaped with serious injuries after a Nissan matatu they were travelling in lost control before plunging into a river at Mabanga near Kipkaren trading centre along the Webuye – Eldoret highway.
According to eye witnesses, the accident occurred a few minutes past 5PM when the over-speeding Matatu, veered off the road and rolled several times before landing into the river.
“It had just started raining and we were trying to cross the road with my three friends to shelter ourselves at the Salvation army church but we spotted the matatu approaching at a high speed. I instructed my friends to stop and wait for it to pass before we could cross, but no sooner had we reached the opposite side of the road than we saw it thrust in the air as some of its passengers fell off on the road before rolling several times and landed into the river,” explained one of the eye witnesses.
Combined efforts from area residents and passers-by saw the trapped body removed from the wrecked vehicle, before police officers from Lumakanda and Turbo joined later and rushed them to Lugari sub county hospital where they were receiving treatment by time of going to press.
Speaking to West Media from his hospital bed at Lugari sub county hospital, one of the victims said the driver was carelessly trying to overtake a car in front before he swerved back to avoid colliding head on with an oncoming truck.
“The driver was attempting to overtake a vehicle that was ahead of us, but upon seeing an oncoming transit truck decided to return to his lane, but he lost control, veered off the road and the matatu overturned four times before we found ourselves in the river,” he
explained.
Lugari Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD), Mr. Bernard Macharia confirmed the accident.
Macharia told www.westfm.co.ke that the Royal Rift Sacco matatu, with 11 passengers on board, was travelling from Kakamega town to Eldoret town at time of the evening tragedy.
“Police officers rushed to the scene where with help from area residents and pedestrians managed to retrieve all its occupants, including one person who died on the spot,” said the police boss, who, however, confirmed that the matatu’s driver fled from the scene immediately after causing the accident.
The deceased was identified as Mr. Nelson Iyumba, aged 25 years. His body was transferred to Kipkaren’s Kimbilio Funeral Home in Uasin Gishu for autopsy.
The OCPD has appealed to motorists and all other road users to be carefully while driving or walking along the highway’s stretch between Turbo and Chimoi, “since that section of the great north highway contains several black spots,” added Macharia.
Area residents have also appealed for the construction of bumps along the sloping road in order to check speeding vehicles, which they alleged have claimed several lives in the recent past.
