Eleven people were killed on Saturday night, June 4, after the matatu they were travelling in was involved in a tragic road accident at Kanyonyoo junction, Kitui County.
According to Kanyonyoo sub-location assistant chief Jacob Mueti, who confirmed the tragic incident, the vehicle lost control while trying to overtake before it veered off the road and crashed.
Mr. Mueti further intimated that the occupants of the 14-seater matatu were travelling from a dowry negotiation event before they met their death.
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The bodies of the victims were ferried to the Kitui Level 4 Hospital Mortuary, while several survivors of the accident are undergoing treatment at the same hospital.
The incident comes barely a day after at least five people lost their lives following a grisly road accident along the Narok-Bomet road.
The accident on Friday, May 3, involved a matatu from the ENA bus company and a truck.
It came a day after the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) said 1,912 people lost their lives in road accidents from January to May this year.
NTSA Deputy Director Road Safety Duncan Kibogong said this was an increase of 9 percent of total fatalities on Kenyan roads as compared to a similar period last year when a total of 1754 road users lost their lives.
“Up to 80 percent of the causes of road traffic injuries are because of behavioral aspects, how we behave on the roads," said Kibogong.
