Eight people lost their lives and three others were injured in a tragic accident on the Mwea-Embu highway in Kirinyaga County on Saturday morning.
The crash occurred at Murubara when a parcel delivery truck traveling from Mwea to Embu veered into oncoming traffic and collided head-on with a tuk-tuk carrying agricultural workers.
Mwea-East Sub-County Police Commander Stephen Okal confirmed that five of the deceased were occupants of the truck, one was inside the tuk-tuk, and two were pedestrians caught in the collision.
The tuk-tuk was ferrying farm laborers from Kimbimbi to the Mwea Irrigation Research area for rice planting.
Eyewitnesses reported that the truck driver lost control while trying to avoid deep potholes along the highway. The driver survived with minor injuries and is currently in police custody as investigations continue.
Emergency responders transported three survivors to nearby hospitals: two to Kimbimbi Hospital and one with severe injuries to Kerugoya County Referral Hospital.
The bodies of the deceased have been moved to Kerugoya Mortuary awaiting identification and post-mortem examinations. Authorities have cleared the scene and launched a full investigation into the cause of the crash.
