A petrol tanker exploded Wednesday morning in Sikata area along Webuye-Malaba highway, killing a driver on the spot.
An eyewitness who spoke to the media said that the accident occurred at around 7:30 a.m.
The tanker that was heading to Malaba hit an electric pole and burst into flames.
Locals who rushed to the scene called the Bungoma County firefighters but they arrived late.
“We tried to save the driver who was still inside the burning tanker, but we could not manage,” he explained.
He blamed the firefighters for taking too long to respond to the distress call.
Bungoma County police commander Francis Kooli confirmed that the tanker veered off the road, hitting an electric post that led to the explosion, causing the tanker to burst into flames.
Kooli said that the grisly accident claimed the life of the tanker driver, who was trapped inside the vehicle and efforts to rescue him hit a snag.
“Even before the firefighters arrived, the locals tried rescuing him but they could not make it because of the fierce fire,” Kooli noted.
Eyewitnesses said the truck was overtaking a matatu that was heading to Kanduyi, Bungoma but unfortunately lost control, causing the accident.
Kooli said that nobody inside the PSV vehicle was injured.
The police boss called on road users to be careful while using the busy highway.
There has been an increase in road accidents in Bungoma.
On Tuesday, three people were killed after a fast-moving trailer hit two school-going kids, killing them on the spot.
By Roseland Lumwamu
