Nairobi [Kenya], September 8: At least 12 people were killed and three others injured Thursday following a road accident along the busy Nairobi-Mombasa highway, the police said.
Bernstein Shari, area divisional police commander, said the 12 passengers died on the spot after the minibus, locally known as matatu, they were traveling in collided head-on with a truck.
Shari said the incident happened in the Ndii area in TaitaTaveta County at about 4 p.m., local time.
The 14-seater matatu belonging to Chania Genesis Sacco was heading toward the port city of Mombasa from the capital of Nairobi while the cargo truck was heading in the opposite direction. This is the latest such accident to happen on the highway.
Dozens of people have been killed and others injured in separate accidents in the past weeks.
Kenya's road safety enforcers have blamed increased road fatalities on speeding and drunk driving.
An estimated 3,000 Kenyans die in road accidents annually despite concerted efforts by the state and the private sector to promote safety on the highways, according to the National Transport and Safety Authority.
Source: Xinhua