By Paul Gitau
Five people, among them three police officers, died Sunday following a grisly road accident at Kijiwetanga area along Malindi/Mombasa highway.
The accident involved a police lorry and a minibus.
Medics fear the death toll could rise because 25 policemen are lying in hospital, most of them with fractured limbs and serious head injuries.
The accident occurred when the lorry, which was ferrying Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) officers from Nairobi to Lamu, collided with the bus ferrying passengers from Malindi to Kaloleni in Kilifi County.
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One police officer and a passenger died on the spot while the other three, including two police officers, died in hospital.
Two officers died at the Tawfiq Hospital in Malindi town while the third one died at the Malindi District Hospital where they had been rushed for treatment.
More than 70 other passengers are undergoing treatment at the two hospitals and majority of them are in critical condition. Among those in critical condition are 25 police officers. A police officer who survived said he could remember their driver veering off the road to avoid colliding head-on with the bus. This was followed by a loud crash.
He said the lorry was carrying 28 police officers who were to be deployed in Lamu. Majority of the survivors sustained serious head injuries.
Assorted weapons
Members of public rushed to the scene but their attempt to rescue the injured were thrashed as some of the injured officers shot in the air to deter the public from moving near their vehicle which had assorted weapons.
Kenya Red Cross officials spent more than an hour rescuing the injured passengers some of whom were trapped in the wreckages. Malindi Municipal Fire fighters were called in to assist remove the trapped passengers. The accident caused a huge traffic jam along the busy highway. The wreckages were later towed to Malindi Police Station.
Malindi Traffic Base Commander Mr Bernard Imbaya confirmed the accident and said police are yet to establish the cause of the accident though investigations have been launched.
