Residents of the Kocholia area in Teso North Sub- County, Busia County, are struggling to come to terms with a shocking and mysterious road accident in which a seven-month pregnant woman died after being hit by a trailer, while her unborn baby survived the horrific incident.
The woman was reportedly walking by the roadside on Tuesday night when a speeding long-distance truck veered off the road and knocked her down, killing her on the spot.
Witnesses said the trailer driver failed to stop after the accident and sped off.
In a rare and dramatic turn of events, the impact of the crash reportedly ruptured the woman’s stomach and mysteriously led to the delivery of a baby girl who was found alive moments after the accident.
The infant was rescued by women who were among the first people to arrive at the scene before she was rushed to Kocholia Health Centre for emergency treatment, then later referred to Busia County Referral Hospital after developing anaemia-related complications.
Benjamin Mukaba, a businessman at the Malaba border and a resident of the area, described the incident as shocking and unbelievable.
“It is shocking and unbelievable that after the accident, the newborn came out of the woman’s womb. The woman died on the spot but the infant was assisted by women who were passing by before she was taken to Kocholia Health Centre and later transferred to Busia County Referral Hospital,” said Mukaba.
Mukaba blamed reckless driving by truck drivers plying the busy Malaba highway, saying the trailer involved in the accident was dangerously overtaking other vehicles before veering off the road and hitting the woman, while lamenting the increasing number of road accidents along the route, especially involving long-distance trucks transporting goods through the Kenya-Uganda border.
Locals are now calling on security agencies and traffic police to intensify patrols and enforce traffic regulations along the busy highway to curb reckless driving, stating that the road has become increasingly dangerous due to heavy traffic associated with customs clearance activities at the Malaba border point.
“This is a busy road due to a lot of activities happening at the customs and it is high time police and relevant agencies move in and ensure traffic rules are adhered to, especially by truck drivers who have a tendency to flout traffic rules and are contributing to the high number of road accidents,” Mukaba added.
Western Regional Police Commander George Seda confirmed that investigations into the incident are ongoing and warned motorists, particularly truck drivers, against violating traffic laws.
“We are going to have a multi-agency approach to ensure the safety of our people on our roads and those who go against the established traffic rules will face the full wrath of the law. We must have order on our roads,” said Seda.
