Tanker Explosion: 30 People Dead
(watch a video of the incident below)
Over 30 people have been killed in Naivasha town, Kenya after a tanker carrying flammable materials smashed into nearby vehicles and exploding in the process.
The 5 am grisly accident on the Nairobi-Nakuru highway occurred on Saturday night, as explained by officials.
The accident involved a fuel tanker and 14 other vehicles. Immediately the fuel tanker impacted with one of the vehicles, it exploded and caused a fire that spread quickly to the nearby vehicles.
Pius Masai of Kenya’s National Disaster Unit said that “At 5 am the death toll was 33 but the search is still on.” He added that rescuers were continuing to comb the area for bodies. Masai said the accident involved “over 11 vehicles burnt” when the tanker rammed into others on the road and caught fire.”
Kenya Red Cross explained that the driver had lost control of the tanker which then crashed into other vehicles and “burst into flames”.
The late-night fire was quickly responded to by rescue teams from St John Ambulance, Red Cross, Police and Nakuru fire brigades.
The incident led to a heavy traffic jam on the ever-busy highway which made the motorists divert to the Mai Mahiu route. This is a notorious highway which in 2009 saw the death of more than 100 people and 200 others injured.
Witness Statements
“The fire was so huge you couldn’t move closer until the fire brigade came and helped put it out. All the vehicles around here were burning,” said George Rono, a driver passing nearby the accident point.
He continued to explain that their survival was by chance because they happen to have seen the accident occur. “We heard vehicles hooting simultaneously then a loud burst that was followed by fire, that’s when I swerved my car and jumped out when the fire started spreading, but luckily it didn’t get to where we were.”
But even as the fire continued to catch up, there were a number of locals who gathered to collect the leaking fuel.
Considering that the Saturday night disaster was on a huge scale, officials fear that the death toll may rise up.
Doctor’s Strike in Progress
But even as this happens, there is the fear as to how the survivors will be treated due to the ongoing doctor’s strike.
(Video courtesy of Citizen TV Kenya)
Main Image Source : Pixabay
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