5 dead 18 injured in grisly road accident

Five people have died and 18 others seriously injured after a grisly road accident in Lomil, along the Lodwar-Kakuma road in Turkana.

The accident that occurred at around 3AM 90 kilometers from Lodwar is alleged to have been caused by a vehicle that was overloaded with both luggage and passengers travelling to their homes in Meyian and Kokuro Villages, Turkana North.

Kibish Sub-County Commissioner Erick Wanyonyi confirmed the incident saying that among the dead is a chief’s wife and a male high school student.

Wanyoyi added that a 5-month-old baby was also taken to the hospital with a broken hand while five other passangers are said to have escaped with minor injuries.

The commissioner, however, pointed out that preliminary investigation has established that that the driver was over speeding and was under the influence of alcohol.

Lapur Ward MCA, who was at the hospital, expressed sadness that many lives had been lost and urged the government to take action on drunken drivers as well as repair the road that has since become a death trap to many.

A passenger, Getrude Ajemi, who was on board the lorry during the accident said that she was asleep when she heard a loud bang, but according to her most people died because they were crashed by the heavy luggage that was in the lorry.

In Turkana there are no public service vehicles so people opt to travel using overloaded lorries that carry luggage, which often times causes fatal accidents.