Kenyans on Tuesday, April 22, flocked to the scene of an accident and started looting after a lorry ferrying cement overturned.
Footage obtained by Kenyans.co.ke showed members of the public at the scene where the lorry overturned in Makutano, Kirinyaga, fleeing with bags of cement.
The footage showed some of the ‘looters’ atop the lorry with others milling around it as they hoped to get their hands on the valuable commodity. Additional footage showed others running away with bags of cement on their backs and others on a boda boda.
In the video, authorities had not arrived as the lucky residents scrambled to get a piece of the manna that had just befallen them.
It is unclear whether the driver or any other occupants of the lorry sustained any injuries or were casualties in the accident.
Despite not posing any obvious physical harm to them, the looting of the cement was still in violation of the law and follows a trend of such behaviour witnessed during accidents of such nature.
A hidden danger in such scenarios is the possibility of fuel leaks that could result in explosions, leading to casualties and fatal injuries. More often than not, people remain oblivious to these risks and focus on looting.
In a past incident that happened a few years ago, a trailer driver watched helplessly as looters stole cartons of sodas from his trailer, which had overturned along Eastern Bypass Road, resulting in massive traffic.
In a video seen by Kenyans.co.ke, the lorry driver sat helplessly atop the overturned lorry, which had fallen on the roadside.
In the clip, tens of individuals, including motorists from vehicles parked nearby, are seen taking cartons of sodas and running away to store them before returning for more.
Another incident saw a lorry carrying maize and beans overturn along Thika Road, with Kenyans, in their typical nature, proceeding to loot. Motorists using the road were filmed looting the maize and beans in guinea bags, as most of them put the farm produce in their cars before driving off.
Other passers-by used boda bodas to ferry the loot even as the police arrived to restore traffic flow. The overturned lorry blocked the lane of vehicles heading to the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD), resulting in a massive traffic snarl-up.
Given the confusion witnessed on the highway, police focused on restoring order.
