Nakuru crash survivors recount doomed journey

Details of the Saturday morning road crash that claimed at least 19 lives at Soysambu on the Nakuru-Nairobi highway reveal that problems started early in the journey.

The driver of the 52-seater FlashLink bus, operating under the Super Highway Sacco, had been randomly picked at the Machakos Bus Station following a heated disagreement among a group of drivers on who was to take the journey, survivors said.

The journey had been delayed for more than an hour following the argument over the driver.

RECKLESS DRIVING
The accident, which occurred in Mbaruk, Gilgil Sub-County, involved three vehicles — the ill-fated bus and two trucks.

Eighteen people died on the spot, another person succumbed to his injuries at St Mary’s Mission Hospital while 14 passengers were injured, seven of them critically.

"One person out of the 14 admitted died but our doctors managed to rescue the rest, who are currently in stable condition," said Shadrack Musau, the nurse in charge at St Mary’s Mission Hospital.

According to survivors who spoke to the Sunday Nation, the driver had been driving dangerously and appeared unfamiliar with the road.

PASSENGERS TRICKED
One of the survivors, Robert Otieno, said the journey had been a mess right from the time they boarded the bus, which plies the Githurai 44 route in Nairobi.

Some of the passengers had been duped and even forced to board the bus, which left Nairobi at 11pm.

Those who spoke to the Sunday Nation said they had obtained tickets for different buses only to be led to the ill-fated one.

The Sunday Nation learnt from the survivors that some of the passengers had threatened to disembark when the drivers started arguing.

"We had threatened to disembark from the bus before the bus drivers picked a random person at the station to drive us to Busia," Mr Otieno said.

HIKED FARE
He said travellers were stranded and had no option as the fares on that route had been hiked.

The operators of the FlashLink bus had taken advantage of the hike to get more passengers by lowering their prices.

Busia-bound passengers were being charged Sh800, Sh200 lower than what other buses were charging.

Survivors said the driver and his conductor were engaged in a heated argument throughout the journey until the accident happened.

Speaking to the Sunday Nation at St Mary’s Mission Hospital, Mr Otieno, who suffered minor head injuries, said the driver was speeding and the accident occurred about three hours into the journey, shortly after 2am.

SPEEDING
According to Mr Otieno, who narrowly escaped death alongside 33 others, the driver seemed unfamiliar with the road as he did not slow down at bumps.

Another survivor, Alectina Auma, who was on her way to the burial of a relative in Uganda, said she asked the driver to slow down but he ignored her pleas.

Ms Auma said all the passengers who were seated behind her went quiet after the accident.

"I just saw the truck hit our bus slightly. We all screamed but after a few seconds I looked behind and saw every one was still," she recounted.

RESCUE MISSION
Among the survivors were five members of one family, one of them Ms Auma, travelling to Busia for the burial of their relative.

Two of them suffered minor injuries but were in a stable condition.

Selina Auma and her children, Ronald Mikae and Edisa Malemo, suffered slight injuries and were treated and discharged while her six-year-old grandson escaped unhurt.

Her sister, Alectina Auma, suffered broken bones in her right shoulder blade.

Nurse Musau told the Sunday Nation that the woman’s condition was stable.

"I thank God for saving us from the jaws of death since it is not by chance that we are all alive yet so many people have died," Ms Selina said.

For Ms Malemo, a faint blood stain on her son’s shirt was the only visible sign of the gruesome accident.

GENESIS OF PROBLEM

She said it was a miracle that her son was not hurt.

"We were sitting two rows from the back of the bus. I cannot believe that everyone behind us died," she said.

According to her, trouble started at the booking office when they noticed the bus was smaller than the those they are used to.

Ms Malemo said the trip was delayed for more than an hour without communication from the bus management or the drivers.

"When we finally left the station, there were two women sitting behind us who kept yelling at the driver asking him to slow down.

"The driver slowed down for a few minutes and once the noise subsided, he would speed again," Ms Malemo said.

LOST LUGGAGE

Although she was happy that her family survived the accident, she expressed concern over the growing hospital bill that they would be forced to pay for her sister.

Another survivor, Collins Otieno, a student at Kenyatta University, said he chose the bus because it was cheaper than other buses.

"We paid Sh800 instead of Sh1,200, which is the normal fare price. For a student like me, that sounded like a good deal," he said.

He said that after the crash, he could not find his laptop or any other part of his luggage.

Nakuru police commander Hassan Barua said the driver of the bus had tried to overtake a truck before the bus collided with an oncoming truck, causing the crash.

Rift Valley traffic enforcement officer Zero Arome led the rescue operation assisted by the Kenya Red Cross team from the South Rift region.

The driver of the bus and his conductor fled after the incident.

SAFETY MEASURES
Isaac Guruacha, the co-driver of one of the trucks, said he saw the bus abruptly emerge from its lane trying to overtake before they collided.

"The driver of the bus tried to return to his lane after seeing our truck but it was too late as we hit the backside of the bus that was still in our lane," Mr Guruacha said.

He said the driver of the bus lost control and further collided with another truck.

Mr Barua, the commandant, said police were investigating to establish why the bus was ferrying passengers to the countryside without authorisation.

President Uhuru Kenyatta mourned the 19 and directed a probe into the cause of the accident as he called on concerned agencies to intensify road safety measures.

The ODM party also sent a message of condolences to the bereaved families.