The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
Seventeen pilgrims travelling from Mikindani Catholic Parish in Mombasa to the Subukia Shrine in Nakuru have been identified as the victims who died in a road crash along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway at Salama, Makueni County.
Police also clarified that the driver of the Howo truck involved in the crash did not die, contrary to earlier reports. He sustained serious injuries and was initially treated at Sultan Hamud Hospital before being transferred to Makueni Level 6 Hospital for further care.
Click here to join our WhatsApp Channel
The other vehicle involved in the accident, a Toyota Hiace, was a privately hired van contracted by Mikindani Catholic Parish to transport pilgrims to Subukia. According to a passenger manifest provided by parish priest Father Patrick Maingi, all 17 occupants of the van were identified on Saturday, paving the way for autopsies scheduled for Sunday. Police confirmed that all 17 occupants of the van died in the crash.
Two other passengers travelling in a separate vehicle, a Toyota Noah, also involved in the accident, were rushed to hospital for treatment and have since been discharged. Investigations into the circumstances surrounding the fatal crash remain ongoing.
Postmortem examinations for the 17 victims, who died in the accident at Mlima Kiu along the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway, were expected to be conducted on Sunday at Sultan Hamud Hospital in Makueni County. Hospital administrator Dr Stephen Mwangangi said the victims’ families had already arrived at the facility ahead of the procedure, adding that once the postmortems were completed, the bodies would be transported to Mombasa County.
The 17 victims were Catholic pilgrims en route to the National Shrine in Subukia for National Prayer Day when the crash occurred in the Salama area in the early hours of Saturday.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) said several other individuals were injured in the accident, which involved multiple vehicles along the busy highway. The authority dispatched a team to the scene to investigate the cause of the crash and assess the condition of the vehicles involved.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Mombasa confirmed that those killed were pilgrims travelling to Subukia. The crash occurred along a stretch of highway that NTSA has previously flagged as a black spot, noting that it had earlier issued road safety recommendations for the area.
President William Ruto was among those who extended condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives.
Kenya officially records approximately 4,000 road deaths annually, though the government’s road safety action plan suggests the actual figure could be significantly higher due to underreporting. Efforts remain ongoing to address the country’s persistent road fatalities.
