Matatu-trailer collision in Nyamira leaves eight dead, seven injured

The mangled wreckage of the ill-fated Nissan Matatu that killed eight people. [Stanley Ongwae, Standard]

Eight people died on Saturday night, while seven others are nursing critical injuries after a matatu and a trailer were involved in a head-on collision at Ekerenyo in Nyamira County.

Nyamira County Police Commander Elizabeth Wakuloba said the matatu rammed into a trailer that was approaching from the Ekerenyo direction towards Ikonge.

The matatu, which was travelling from Nairobi to Nyamira, collided head-on with the trailer coming from the opposite direction.

"We are working to trace the whereabouts of the trailer driver, but we are certain he escaped unhurt," Wakuloba said.

According to doctors at the Nyamira County Referral Hospital (NCRH), five people died on the spot, while three others succumbed to their injuries while receiving treatment.

NCRH Medical Superintendent Angela Ogendi said the hospital admitted two injured passengers to the intensive care unit (ICU), while five others were treated and discharged.

She said the two patients in critical condition sustained severe head injuries and would be referred to a higher-level facility for specialised neurosurgical care.

"Those in ICU sustained serious head injuries, and we are already in the process of referring them to another facility for neurosurgical intervention," Dr Ogendi said.

Two brothers who suffered critical injuries were travelling with their mother and another sibling. Doctors confirmed that their mother and sibling died in the accident.

Among the deceased were two mothers travelling with their children to Nyamira town.

In a tragic twist, the father of four children had planned to travel with the rest of the family but was forced to take a different matatu after the one they intended to use filled up.

The father, identified as Kodhek, said the family was travelling to their village in Kenyenya, Nyamira South, to attend a relative's funeral.

"I only pray that God gives me strength to overcome this tragedy," Kodhek said.

Another woman died alongside her three-month-old baby. She was travelling from Nairobi, where she had gone on a business trip.

Collins Mayaka, the son of the woman who died with her infant, said his mother had travelled to Nairobi on Friday to restock goods.

Nyamira Governor Amos Nyaribo, who visited the survivors at the county hospital, said his government had moved in to form a task force that will take care of the various social welfare concerns of the victims.