01 July,2023 11:46 AM IST | Nairobi | mid-day online correspondent
Wreckage of vehicles after the accident Saturday, July 1, 2023. Pic/AP/PTI
At least 45 people were killed when a truck rammed into several other vehicles and market traders in western Kenya, police said, reported news agency AP.
According to AP, the Friday evening accident occurred at a location known for crashes near the Rift Valley town of Londiani, which is about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northwest of the capital, Nairobi.
Officers at the scene counted 45 bodies, but more people were believed to be trapped in the wreckage, Rift Valley police commander Tom Odera told The Associated Press. The number of people injured remained unclear.
"It is now dark and the place is raining so we will take some time to confirm the final number of casualties," Anews agency AP quoted Odera as saying.
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Witnesses quoted by local media said the truck veered off the major highway and hit several vehicles before hitting pedestrians and traders. Witnesses shared photos of the vehicle wreckages mangled beyond recognition.
Police said rescue operations would continue into the night. The Kenya Red Cross Society said heavy rainfall had interrupted the response and that people were still trapped in wrecked vehicles.
"We are suspecting a truck which was being driven ... towards Kericho lost control and rammed into matatus [local minibuses] that were packed at a bus stop, running over those matatus and injuring passengers and pedestrians who were standing by the bus stop," a local police commander Mayek said, as per Al Jazeera.
Peter Otieno, a driver, who witnessed the accident said: "I saw a speeding oncoming trailer. I swerved and escaped hitting him head-on. The person who was behind me thought I wanted to buy something. He overtook me and that is when he was hit. The trailer went off the road and hit other vehicles."
"I saw about 20 bodies with my own eyes. There were other bodies that were under the vehicle," he said.
(This is a developing story, more details awaited.)
With inputs from AP and ANI
