Fifteen people have been confirmed dead following a grisly accident involving a bus and a mini bus at Kizingo Kwa Shume area of Malindi Sub-County along the Mombasa-Malindi Highway.
Many others are fighting for their lives in various health facilities in Malindi and Kilifi following the accident that occurred at about 6 .00 am on Wednesday between Gede and Msabaha trading centres.
Kilifi County Commissioner Kutswa Olaka confirmed that 14 people, including the two drivers, died on the spot while the fifteenth person died on arrival at one of the health facilities.
The accident involved a Muhsin Bus managed by the Garissa Sacco that was travelling to Garissa from Mombasa and a mini bus travelling from Malindi to Mombasa. It was not immediately clear how many passengers aboard the two vehicles.
The County Commissioner said the Muhsin Bus had a tyre burst, making the driver to lose control and ram on the on-coming mini bus, pushing it to the roadside.
Olaka thanked the police, the Kenya Red Cross and other well-wishers who rushed to the scene to participate in the rescue mission, but castigated some wayward people who decided to loot from the accident victims.
He also urged the contractor rehabilitating the Mombasa-Malindi road to hasten the work as parts of the road were prone to accidents.
Kilifi County Police Commander Nelson Taliti urged road users to be extra careful and observe acceptable speed limits to avoid such mishaps in the future, noting that had the driver been carefully that the accident would have been avoided if the Muhsin Bus was not being driven at high speed.
His sentiments were echoed by the Kilifi County Kenya Red Cross Society Coordinator, Mr. Nelson Ndombi.
A driver with Simba coach, who claimed to have witnessed the accident, blamed the contractor rehabilitating the road for allegedly doing a shoddy job, adding that the poor state of the road was responsible for the accident.
When journalists arrived at the accident scene, a huge crowd of onlookers had gathered as rescue efforts were ongoing. Some of the bodies, including those of the drivers, were still trapped in the wreckages.
The Muhsin Bus was badly damaged at the front side while the mini-bus was a complete wreck.
By Emmanuel Masha
