Two Lives Lost and Five Hurt in Devastating Head-On Crash on Nakuru-Nairobi Highway
Photos of the accident scene. Credit: Sikika Road Safety
Two individuals lost their lives, while others were hurt, following a grisly road crash on the Nakuru-Nairobi Highway, a key transit route for travelers. The fateful event occurred on a seemingly ordinary Sunday, January 5.
Involved in the collision were a Nissan minibus, also known as a matatu, and a larger bus, engaging in a catastrophic head-on crash near Naivasha’s Prison Bridge. The Eldoret Shuttle Nissan matatu, after ramming into a Nairobi-bound bus, painted a haunting picture of chaos and loss.
The devastating scene left five passengers battling severe injuries. The accident brings a heavy question to mind—can these head-on collisions really be avoided? As per Sikika Road Safety’s passionate declaration, “Time for an open dialogue—can head-on crashes be sidestepped?”
Tragically, two precious lives were cut short at the scene, with five others nursing serious injuries, said Sikika Road Safety in a critical call to action. The timing of this calamity coincided with heightened road activity, as families journeyed back to urban centers after school breaks, often a period marked by increased road traffic incidents.
This particularly grim incident followed closely behind another mishap the preceding day, where two private vehicles collided near Kinungi on the Nairobi-Nakuru road, leaving five people injured and necessitating their transport to Naivasha Subcounty Referral Hospital by St. John Ambulance personnel.
Adding to the tragedy, merely two days earlier, ten souls perished in a fatal encounter involving a matatu shuttling between Eldoret and Kitale, and a lorry, in a horrific head-on meeting at Chemoset in Soy. These sobering facts were disclosed by Uasin Gishu County Police Commander, Benjamin Mwanthi, who also noted four others sustained injuries.
“It seemed like the matatu was speeding when it lost control and swerved into the lorry’s path,” he suggested, while describing the chaotic scene at Chemoset junction, where the abrupt, violent smash took nine lives instantly, the driver and eight travelers among them.
One survivor, out of the five initially pulled from the wreckage, succumbed shortly after being rushed to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret, the facility known for its specialized care. Police are leaving no stone unturned in their pursuit of clarity on what led to this gruesome disaster.
The Great Rift Shuttle Sacco matatu, originating from Nairobi in the early dawn of Friday, had the misfortune of this tragic encounter while on its return path post a drop-off in Soy and before advancing to Kitale. This tragedy underscores the urgent need to rethink road safety measures amid busy Kenyan highways.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
