3 injured as lorry runs over IED in Sankuri, Lamu County
Kenya Defence Forces soldiers patrol Lamu. Three people were seriously injured on December 8, 2018 after their lorry ran over an improvised explosive device near Sankuri in Lamu County. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The injured victims are the lorry’s two drivers and their assistant.
Three people have been seriously injured after a lorry they were travelling in ran over an improvised explosive device (IED) in Lamu County on Saturday.
Linda Boni Operation director Joseph Kanyiri said the lorry hit the IED suspected to have been planted by Al-Shabaab militants near Sankuri on Kiunga-Hindi Road.
Mr Kanyiri said the victims were taken to Kiunga dispensary for first-aid treatment and will be flown to King Fahad County Hospital in Lamu town.
The injured victims are the lorry’s two drivers and their assistant.
The three were ferrying goods from Hindi to Kiunga.
Security sources who talked to the Nation on the ground said the lorry was extensively damaged during the attack.
PAST ATTACKS
It’s not the first time that Al-Shabaab militants have launched an attack near Sankuri.
On August 29 this year, five Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers died on the spot and 10 others were seriously wounded after a vehicle they were travelling in hit an IED on the Kiunga-Sankuri road.
The soldiers were on a humanitarian assignment to fetch and distribute water to residents in the area.
On August 8 this year, six KDF officers died in a similar manner after their vehicle ran over an IED at Kwa Omollo Bridge on the Hindi-Kiunga Road.
On September 24 this year, 10 Al-Shabaab militants were killed and seven AK-47 rifles and assorted ammunition recovered at Taksile area which is about 25 kilometres from Pandanguo in Lamu West.
On November 18 this year, four Al-Shabaab terrorists were killed and six AK-47 riffles recovered by Rapid Border Patrol Unit (RBPU) in Ijara border of Lamu and Garissa Counties.
The militants had attacked Ijara a Safaricom mast but soldiers taking part in the ongoing multi-agency security operation engaged them in a fire fight that saw four of the terrorists killed.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said the victims of Saturday attack were ferrying goods from Kiunga to Hindi but it as the other way round.
