At least seven people died instantly and scores others were injured when a lorry rammed into a matatu (Slang for a 14 sitter passenger service bus) along Embu-Nairobi road a short distance from Embu town.
The impact of the lorry tossed the matatu about 50 metres from the spot where it was picking customers until it hit a tree which stopped it.
Among the dead was a pedestrian who was said to have been walking along the shoulders of the busy highway.
Eye witnesses said the lorry was heading down hill on a steep terrain and it appeared the driver was trying to hand start it when its brakes failed and gathered high speed before ramming into the Matatu.
They said the lorry's brakes failed after it failed to be hand started by the driver who was said to have been drunk at the time he attempted to start it.
The Matatu was picking passengers destined for Thika when the accident occurred.
The conductor of the ill fated Matatu Antony Mugendi said he was outsides calling for the passengers when the accident occurred and added that he could not ascertain the whereabouts of his driver.
The lorry is used for transporting animal feed but it could not be established which was its destination.
Eastern Provincial Traffic Enforcement officer Martin Asin said the lorry had been parked at Shell Petrol Station the previous night and in the morning failed to start.
Asin said the driver was assisted by some people to hand start the lorry at around 12.30pm, which then gained momentum because of the steep road but failed to start and thus could not brake.
“The matatu was picking customers on its way to Nairobi when the lorry rammed it from behind and pushed it some distance away,” said Asin.
He said it was not clear the number of people that were in the lorry but added that they arrested the driver and he was being held at the Embu Police Station.
He attributed the accident to break failure of the lorry while most of those dead were at the rear of the Matatu.
Although the injured were rushed to the nearby Embu Provincial General Hospital police had to transfer them to private medical institutions due to the ongoing nurse's strike leading to more deaths of the seriously injured ones.
Thursday 27 December 2012
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000073772&story_title=Kenya-Seven-killed-in-Embu-grisly-accident
http://www.kbc.co.ke/news.asp?nid=79574
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