Six people, including the driver of a Busia-bound bus, died in a grisly road crash at Fort Ternan on the Londiani–Muhoroni road in Kericho County on Tuesday morning.
Police reported that at least 30 passengers sustained injuries in the accident and are receiving treatment at Londiani and Kericho County Referral Hospitals.
According to Kericho Police Commander James Ngetich, the Uwezo bus, which was headed to Busia from Nairobi, rammed into the rear of a truck, killing six people on the spot.
“The driver of the bus lost control of the vehicle before colliding with the truck. The driver and five passengers died immediately. Thirty passengers sustained injuries of varying degrees,” said Mr Ngetich.
The front section of the bus was completely mangled. Police officers and emergency responders arrived shortly after the crash, coordinating rescue operations that lasted more than two hours.
The accident temporarily paralysed transport along the busy road connecting Kericho and Kisumu Counties. Fort Ternan is known as a high-risk accident area on the Londiani–Muhoroni road.
The crash occurred just hours after 10 people died at the Karai black spot in Naivasha, bringing the total number of fatalities from road accidents in less than 24 hours to 16.
Meanwhile, dozens of students narrowly escaped death in Kimende on the Nairobi–Nakuru highway, after a Guardian bus they were travelling in veered off the road and landed in a ditch.
Witnesses reported that the driver lost control of the bus, though most students sustained only minor injuries.
In recent days, road accidents have surged across the country as Kenyans returned from upcountry trips after the festive season.
The accidents followed another tragedy three days earlier at Kikopey, which claimed five lives.
The spike in accidents has prompted the Motorists Association of Kenya to call for an urgent crackdown on rogue driving schools, citing inadequate training as a major cause.
The association claims that many driving institutions fail to provide critical skills, such as highway and night driving, but still record 100 percent pass rates for their students.
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