Two killed, 27 injured in accident along Mombasa Road, Nairobi

The mini bus that was involved in an accident that left 27 others with injuries with four of them being admitted in hospital.

Nairobi, Kenya: At least two people were Monday night killed in an accident along Mombasa Road near the Standard Group Centre, Nairobi.

The accident left 27 others with injuries with four of them being admitted in hospital.

Police and survivors said the driver of the 32-seater matatu was overtaking and overlapping at high speed when he lost control and rolled.

Nairobi head of traffic Leonard Katana said the two died on the spot while majority of those injured had been trapped in the matatu before being rescued.

“The driver was reckless in his movements on the road as he had gone off the road overlapping when the vehicle rolled,” said Katana.

Among the dead was a woman who police said was pregnant.

The matatu was headed for Imara Daima estate from the city centre with 29 passengers when the accident happened.

A survivor said the driver was speeding at the time of the accident.

“He had been overlapping at high speed at when the accident happened I saw it turn as if we were going back to the CBD before it rolled,” said a survivor.

The accident caused a huge traffic jam on the busy highway as emergency service providers rushed to rescue the trapped ones before it was cleared.

Police plan an operation ahead of the Easter holidays to check on vehicles’ safety on Mombasa Road, Waiyaki Way and Thika Road.

Katana said most public service vehicles have tampered with their speed governors flouting traffic rules.

Elsewhere, a man fell from the eighth floor of a house and died instantly in Kilimani area, Nairobi on Monday.

The victim was working on the construction site when he slid and fell to the floor dying. Police say they were called long after the incident had happened and took the body to the mortuary.

The incident is now under investigation to establish if the contractor had observed all the measures of construction.