Grief as five family members perish in Kikopey road crash

On Monday morning, James Wegesa called his wife, Karen Lore, 52, after she failed to arrive at their home in Nairobi on Sunday night, as scheduled.

Lore, who was with their three-year-old daughter Grace Wegesa, was travelling from Kisumu, where they had gone to bury their late mother.

Lore was also accompanied by her brother Peter Olang, 43, his wife Rosebenta Aoko, 35, their daughter Neville Olang, aged 2 years, and Calvin Raila, aged 20.

However, Wegesa’s phone call was answered by a police officer, who informed him of an accident and urged him to visit Gilgil Police Station in Nakuru County.

The scene at Gilgil Police Station was shocking: Wegesa was greeted by the wreckage of a Toyota IST, a vehicle he recognised as his brother-in-law Olang's.

The vehicle was involved in a head-on collision with an Easy Coach bus in the Kikopey area along the Nakuru-Nairobi Highway on Monday, a few minutes after midnight.

Only one of the family members, Calvin, aged 20, survived the accident. He sustained serious injuries, and he is currently recuperating at Nakuru Level V Hospital (PGH).

Wegesa, who mustered the strength to speak to the media, said he lost everything he had because of a careless driver.

“I lost five people in the accident, including my small family: my wife and daughter. I also lost my brother-in-law, his wife and their child. Now, I am left alone,” said Wegesa.

The former driver was only handed dirty luggage belonging to his departed family members, with some covered in blood.

In pain, Wegesa, together with another close relative, received the luggage, confused about where to take it, as the owners were no more.

Wegesa said that two weeks ago, his family travelled to Seme in Kisumu County, where his wife had gone to bury her deceased mother.

“We buried my mother-in-law on September 5, 2026, and I travelled back a day later. My late wife decided to remain behind and join me this Sunday,” he narrated.

Wegesa said they were in constant communication with his family and the last time he spoke to them, they were along the road, on their way back to Nairobi.

Being a driver for more than 30 years, Wegesa admitted that the road can be dangerous, but maintained that some drivers were just careless.

“Someone who was not careful on the road has done this to my family. I blame the driver for not being mindful of other people’s lives and for overtaking on a continuous yellow line,” he lamented.

Gilgil Sub County Police Commander Wilstone Mwakio confirmed that scores of passengers in the bus sustained minor injuries. Still, two who were seriously injured were rushed to Gilgil sub-county hospital before being discharged.

According to Mwakio, the bus, allegedly travelling at high speed, was reportedly overtaking a fleet of vehicles when it collided with the oncoming car.

“Preliminary report suggests that the bus was unlawfully overtaking along the accelerating climbing lane when it hit the personal vehicle head-on. Five died on the spot,” confirmed Mwakio.

He added that they were seeking the bus driver to record a statement, noting that he was not only responsible for the accident but also caused a major traffic jam for the better part of the night.

He identified speeding as the primary cause of road accidents on the highway, which is currently being expanded under the Rironi-Mau Summit project.

While cautioning truck and bus drivers to exercise caution, Mwakio confirmed that investigations had commenced to determine the cause of the accident.

“The bodies of the five have been moved to PNN funeral home awaiting post-mortem. One is injured at PGH Nakuru.

Amos Kundu, a survivor of the bus, said they were en route to Kakamega and had left Nairobi around 8 pm, with the driver allegedly speeding throughout the journey.

He said some passengers raised concerns about the speeding and alleged reckless overtaking, but the driver and conductor ignored their warnings.

“As we were driving downhill, there was a loud bang, and we realised we had hit another vehicle. We survived a scare,” he said.

The accident occurred a year after 14 members of the same family were killed in an accident at Kariandusi, within Gilgil, along the same highway on September 28, 2025.

Their 14-seater Matatu collided head-on with a trailer at Kariandusi, leaving 14 dead and three injured.

A month later, on October 25, six people were killed in Soysambu near Kekopey when their personal vehicle collided head-on with a bus.

The bus is said to have been overtaking a fleet of vehicles before the head-on collision.

George Ogunde, who lost his brother David Madara, said his brother, together with his five friends, were from a burial in Nyakach, Kisumu County.

On January 3 this year, six people were killed in an accident at Kekopey at around 9.30 am.

Mwakio then confirmed that the trailer's brakes failed while it was heading from Nairobi to Nakuru, and after avoiding a fleet of vehicles, it rammed the back of a Matatu.

"Five people died on the spot. One died while recuperating at the hospital. Seven survived and underwent treatment,” said Mwakio.

Report by Daniel Chege, Anthony Gitonga and Ann Njoroge.