At least 21 people are feared dead after the bus they were in overturned at the Coptic Roundabout on the Kisumu-Kakamega Road.
In the tragic accident, which was confirmed by Nyanza Regional Traffic Commander Peter Maina, the casualties were believed to be mourners returning from a funeral on Friday, August 8.
While the exact cause of the accident remains unclear, preliminary reports indicated that the driver lost control before the bus veered off the highway and overturned.
Images obtained by Kenyans.co.ke showed the mangled wreck of the bus, belonging to a local high school, with others showing local milling around the scene of the accident.
Eyewitnesses described a chaotic scene as passengers were thrown out of the vehicle upon impact.
Aside from the casualties, it is believed five others are in critical condition with 15 nursing injuries. The bus was reportedly coming from a burial in Nyahera, Kisumu County.
Coptic roundabout, the scene of the accident, is known to be a serious blackspot with numerous accidents occurring in the area. Locals have in the past blamed the high number of crashes on poor road design, lack of proper and clear signage, and reckless driving.
Common accidents involve buses or trucks overturning, as the steep nature of the road poses a significant challenge to drivers of heavy commercial vehicles in transit.
Many have lamented that the road design is a major reason why crashes in this area are common, citing the descent from Riat Hills leading to the roundabout as the point where most drivers lose control.
This year, three accidents have already occurred at the roundabout, which is located near Riat Hills on the dual carriageway connecting Kisumu and Vihiga counties.
On July 15, there was an accident involving a bus belonging to Uzima University, which was carrying students and staff on an academic trip. The vehicle overturned, killing a worker and injuring 46 others. The driver is said to have lost control of the vehicle while trying to navigate the Coptic Roundabout; the bus veered off the road and landed in a ditch.
Barely two weeks earlier, on July 3, three people died while five others were taken to Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital in critical condition after a lorry heading to Kisumu from Vihiga overturned at the roundabout.
In April, an Easy Coach bus ferrying passengers was involved in an accident at the same location, resulting in the death of a high school student and leaving several others nursing injuries.
The fatal accident today follows one that occurred along the Kisumu-Busia highway in Sirwa Posta, Vihiga County. In the crash, an unknown number of students from Salvation Army Imusutsu High School were left nursing injuries after their bus lost control and overturned at the side of the road.
