One night, three families, and at least nine lives lost , Kenya’s roads turned deadly on Wednesday as separate crashes in Machakos and Kisii left families confronting sudden and devastating loss.
At the Machakos County Referral Hospital Funeral Home, grief engulfed families mourning relatives who died in a grisly crash at Kapiti Plains along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway.
The accident occurred at around 7:40 p.m. on Wednesday when a Toyota Hiace matatu operated by Kinatwa Sacco collided head on with an oncoming lorry. The matatu driver and four passengers died at the scene, while seven other passengers sustained injuries and were rushed to Machakos Level Five Hospital. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash.
For another family, the grief had already arrived a day earlier following the death of gospel musician Vincent Senior, who was killed in a separate road accident in Machakos on Tuesday.
Senior, whose real name is reported as Vincent Onyango, was widely known for his gospel hit Kaburi ni Tajiri, a song centred on mortality and spiritual reflection. His death was confirmed as mourners gathered at the Machakos County Referral Hospital Funeral Home, with Bishop Bonface Mangeti delivering the announcement.
The musician’s song Kaburi ni Tajiri had become one of his best known works, making his death in a road accident particularly poignant for his fans and fellow gospel musicians.
Meanwhile, Kisii town was also plunged into mourning after another Wednesday evening crash near Chomachoma Zone along the Kisii CBD-Daraja Mbili Road.
Four people were killed after a lorry reportedly lost control and veered off the road, hitting pedestrians using the roadside walkway. Several others were injured and taken to Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital as police began investigations into the cause of the crash.
The separate crashes have left families mourning across Machakos and Kisii, with investigations continuing into what caused the fatal incidents.
