Four people killed in Matuu accident

Matuu, Kenya: Four people including three nurses were Saturday night killed in an accident in Matuu area, along the Nairobi-Garissa highway.

The four were in a vehicle belonging to the ministry of health and were headed to Mwingi  when the accident happened in Sophia area, police said.

The government car is said to have veered off the road to avoid colliding with an oncoming bus that was overtaking.

Police said the car crashed into a ditch killing the four. Machakos County police commander Gideon Amalla said the four ministry officials were headed for an assignment when the accident occurred at about 7 pm.

“The vehicle veered off the road landing into a ditch which resulted to the death of the four. We are informed they are all civil servants,” said Amalla.

The accident came hours after five other passengers had been killed in Athi River area along the Nairobi-Mombasa highway. This was after their matatu plunged into the river after being hit by a lorry.

The matatu was headed to Athi River from Machakos when the accident happened on Saturday at about  11am. Amalla said the dead included a child and two women. Police at the scene said the matatu plunged into the river making it difficult to rescue those trapped.

Police are struggling to contain traffic accidents in the country that are on the rise. More than 170 people have been killed in the last three weeks alone in the country.