More than 30 dead as tanker rams into vehicles on Kenya road

NAIROBI, Kenya – A tanker carrying chemical gas slammed into other vehicles and burst into flames on a major road in Kenya, killing more than 30 people and injuring 10, officials said Sunday.

The vehicle lost control while going downhill on the road from the capital of Nairobi to Naivasha late Saturday, said Mwachi Pius Mwachi, the deputy director and communications officer for the National Disaster Management Unit.

“This is a serious chemical incident,” Mwachi said. “Police and other rescuers are still on the scene … clearing debris.”

Felestus Kioko, the Red Cross co-ordinator of the region, said more than 30 bodies had been recovered. Police said that 10 people were injured. Eleven vehicles were burnt in the accident.

“The lorry was in high speed and lost control after hitting speed bumps an ended up ramming into oncoming cars,” said witness Peter Kimani.

Kenya has struggled to reduce the rising number of road accidents as more people acquire vehicles in the country’s growing middle class.

In 2013, the government re-introduced breathalyzers to limit accidents blamed on drunk drivers.

According to the National Transport and Safety Authority 1,574 died in road accidents in the first half of this year, 86 more deaths than in the same period last year.