Boda boda rider, woman and her two children perish in grisly accident

Scene at the accident scene in Ndumari area, Manyatta on Embu-Kiritiri road that claimed four lives. January 4, 2022 [Muriithi Mugo, Standard]

An eight-month baby is among four people who have perished in a grisly road accident that involved a boda boda operator and G4S Van.

Julius Kyumbure, the Embu West Sub-county Police Commander said the Boda boda operator with his three pillion passengers, a woman and her two children, died on the spot.

"The rider was trying to overtake coming from Embu town and headed to Kiritiri when his bike collided head-on with a G4S Van that was coming from Kiritiri Side," Said Kyumbure.

He warned Boda boda operators against taking the law into their hands whenever an accident occurred adding that they should allow police to do their work.

The police commander said they had launched investigations into the accident while bodies of the victims were transferred to the Embu Level Five Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary.

Boda Boda operators took to the streets and lit tyres on the road as they protested what they termed as negligence by authorities.

Martin Muchira, the chairman of Eastern Boda Boda Association said they had written several letters to authorities to erect speed bumps on the said road that has claimed several lives.

"We are giving them an ultimatum of one month and if they fail to erect the bumps, we will erect our own and disrupt operations on this road," Muchira said.

Embu County Commissioner Abdulahi Galgalo, who visited the scene pleaded with the operators to clear the road and allow smooth flow of traffic and flow resumed without any confrontation with the police.

"Sadly, we have lost four lives and I urge all motorists to exercise caution especially during the opening of schools," Galgalo said.

He said he had reached out to KENHA officials who agreed to erect speed bumps on the road within one month.